Parallels
by Mslead
Summary: Lucy always knew books opened roads to new adventures, but never had she dreamed she would be falling into one herself. When she comes across a dusty old book, Lucy finds herself thrust into a journey filled with evil wizards and a tricky dragon who kept looking at her like she was lunch. She had to find a way to return home, but at the end of the day - would she want to? NALU
1. Into the Looking Glass

**A/N: Greetings! This is a new collaboration I'm doing with my beta Kytrin. The updates will be weekly as we already have a generous chunk of it written. This is going to be a long ride but we look forward to taking it with you!**

 **Disclaimer: We do not own Fairy Tail or profit from it. This is our disclaimer for the rest of the story.**

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Lucy had never considered herself to be anything other than an ordinary girl. Sure, she was beautiful, and vain enough to be aware of that fact, but while she certainly had an active imagination, and a deep love for books and writing, she never thought of it as strange when she bothered to think about it at all. Which she didn't often do.

That was simply the way she was, and she could see no reason to change it. It was nice being a 'smart' blond, and she even took a certain amount of glee out of proving that she wasn't just her looks. The reactions for that never got old. Especially since it was the last thing anyone seemed to expect out of 'The Heartfilia Heiress'.

A title that never failed to annoy her endlessly.

Especially since she wasn't a 'heiress' of anything except a pile of money that she would've traded in an instant for another day with her mom and dad.

Both were dead now. Her mom when she was little, and her dad a couple of years previously from overwork.

It was an old story altogether, but it still left her wishing from time to time that she'd had another day with her mom, or more time to mend fences with her dad. They never had seen eye to eye after her mom's death. Especially with her flat refusal to act like a rich snob.

It was something her dad hadn't been able to drum into her no matter how many private tutors, or expensive boarding schools, or whatever she'd been to. And they'd only just begun making headway on it when his workaholic tendencies caught up to him.

She sighed softly as the rain began to clear up, and decided to take a walk to the bookstore or something. All the gloom was making her introspective, and depressing her.

Here in a minute she would start thinking about her pathetic lack of love life, and other things.

Definitely time to get out of the house.

She smiled slightly as she slipped her shoes on, grabbed her keys, and headed for the door grateful that Barnes and Noble had a branch open within walking distance. Sitting in the café with a book or two sounded wonderful.

She made her way into the air conditioned store, finding relief from the hot sun and suffocating humidity. Somehow between the time she left her apartment and the short walk to the nearby bookstore, the sun had returned with the vengeance of a thousand angry dragons and scorched the earth. Now it was just disgusting outside. It almost wasn't fair to everyone stuck outdoors, grinding through their lives in the heat, but she tried not to think about that.

Bundling up a handful of blond hair, she twisted a fistful into a messy bun to get it off her sticky neck. The comfort was almost immediate. Her purse still weighed a metric ton, digging into her shoulder, but the cool air did wonders.

The air of the bookstore was calming, seeping into her bones as a sensation of home fell over her. This was where she felt most at ease. Not amongst stuffy parties or frilly dresses. Dusty pages and inkwells were where she belonged.

The environment put her buzzing thoughts at ease, the sanctuary of books pulling her through their aisles. Lucy's personal collection would have taken up an entire wing of her old estate had she still been living in her old childhood home.

She walked along the threadbare carpet, trodden down by hundreds of customers. A smile worked its way over her face and she let herself be pulled along the aisles by the allure of shiny book jackets.

Her fingers ghosted over the spines of several books, the touch loving and attentive. Many she had read before, but there were several favorites she wouldn't mind cracking open again.

Still, she hesitated when she stopped in the Adventure section. Lucy wouldn't precisely call herself a shut in, but she _did_ spend a great deal of time reading books. Back when her mother was still alive but had fallen ill, they followed the adventures of as many heroes as Lucy could get her small hands on. It was the only way she and her mother could still have their fun. As such, she kept the tradition alive and recognized many authors names.

Except the one directly in front of her.

Sticking out a little from the others, it had a heavy leather spine. Unlike the glossy covers surrounding it, this one was a rusty shade of brown with gold letters embossed into it.

 _Fairy Tail_

How strange, she thought, picking a finger on the top of the book and tugging it back.

There was no author, and the book itself was extremely plain. Just the title stamped on the spine and cover.

The simplistic design made her curious, and a smile lit her face as she pulled open the front cover. The paper was thick and heavy, an old sort of parchment.

She liked the way it felt on her fingertips, realizing someone had put a lot of love into creating a book like this.

It cemented her decision to make this her purchase to add to her collection. Even if the story was boring, the book was beautiful in its simplicity. There was something alluring about its embossed cover, so she tucked it under her arm.

Lucy wasn't aware of it, but her beautiful new friend had already betrayed her. The moment she'd opened the cover there had been a surge of magic through the otherwise mundane shop.

There were no sparkles. No flashes of light. Nothing like out of the stories she loved so much. In fact, there wasn't even so much as a ripple of strange breeze let alone a cliché crack of lightning.

However, that didn't mean the event was unnoticed.

Indeed, as she was happily moving towards the check out line, thoughts of an iced coffee and maybe a pastry to enjoy with her new book on her mind, there was a man who had taken intense notice of the young blond who had just unknowingly turned the world on its side.

He wasn't anything anyone would take notice of really. An ordinary middle-aged man. Still reasonably fit, though a bit soft around the middle, and surely possessing a wife and a couple of high school kids.

But he was hardly ordinary.

Since he was a boy he'd been part of a secret organization like his father before him. One designed to find people like the brightly smiling blond.

It seemed silly on the surface. She didn't look like anything special. But there had been no mistaking the way the medallion he wore under his shirt had warmed when she'd opened that book. A book that no one could see unless their magic was active, and no one could open unless their magic was powerful enough.

Given her ease with both, and her regularity as a customer, it seemed like Miss Heartfilia's magic had blossomed recently. A late bloomer by most standards, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that it had happened at all.

He carefully concealed his excitement as best he could as he slipped away to check the medallion. His hands shook slightly as he read the results on it, and nearly dropped it with shock.

A celestial wizard.

Magic of any kind was rare. But a celestial wizard?

The only kind who could open gates?

It nearly made him faint with shock.

It was what they'd been searching for. After so many centuries it seemed insane that at long last they'd found one who could re-open the gates.

And she had fallen into his lap.

He tucked the medallion away as he was called to the register. No doubt Miss Lucy was having difficulty purchasing her new book as it had no barcode or anything similar. A smile slipped over his lips as he moved out of the shadows and to the front of the store.

"What can I help you with?" He asked pleasantly as he approached the pair.

"There's not a barcode on this book." Lucy explained, slight confusion wrinkling her brow, "We're not sure how much it costs or anything."

"Ah." He smiled at her, "Allow me to take a look at it?" He picked up the book and looked it over, "Ah, I see. You've picked up one from our vintage collection. It was printed quite a long time ago."

Lucy blinked a little and frowned slightly, vaguely remembering the small section of real antique books at the back of the store, and smiled. "I guess it must've been mis-filed then. It was sitting in the adventure section."

He raised an eyebrow, the very image of a surprised manager, "Was it? I'll have to check for others that might've been misplaced then." He turned to the cashier, "In the meantime, the prices for these are located here."

He showed her where the little, never, used binder was and helped her find Fairy Tail leaving both cashier and Lucy smiling happily as the transaction was completed.

He watched her head directly to Starbucks and a hint of a secret smile played over his lips. He knew she would be there for the next few hours at least. She was a regular after all.

Perfect.

He would have plenty of time to call for some back up.

Oblivious to the man's watchful eye, Lucy found herself a nice cushy chair to plop into with her purchase and drink. The book rested comfortably on her lap, her legs tucking up under her body.

Excited, she dragged her hand over the rich leather cover before flipping it open and running a hand over the thick parchment. Her eyes drank in the fanciful script, finding herself right at home in the printed words.

A smile tugged at her lips as the words 'Once Upon a Time' opened the novel. It seemed the play on words in the title of her new book was appropriate. Lucy had always felt a certain kinship with fairy tales.

She thought it was a little unusual for it to be spelled the way it was, but it wasn't enough to distract her.

Grimm's Fairy Tales and Disney's renditions of the old stories had been Lucy's bread and butter growing up. There was nothing more interesting to her than the stories of a heroic prince defeating a dragon to save the princess. Sure, they were a bit primitive in certain ways, but Lucy enjoyed the classics.

She bit her bottom lip and grinned, barely able to contain her excitement. Wondering what this one could be about, she read on, ignoring everything around her.

 _Once upon a time in a land far, far away, there lived a mighty dragon…_

Lucy soon discovered it was more like an anthology of fairy tales. Short stories, but interconnected in ways that surprised her. Even more shocking, all of the familiar faces from the old stories she was familiar with were no where to be seen.

There were no Princes or Princesses to be rescued, no evil witches, not even a main character to follow.

Instead it followed a group of people in their various adventures all which ranged from terrifying to hilarious in the space of a single breath. Lucy was absolutely enthralled as she followed the odd adventures of these strangers. All of whom were part of a wizarding guild named Fairy Tail, thus the name of the book she gathered.

Quickly she became enamored with all of the strange characters. Erza, the Titania, Gray the Slayer, Levy the Architect, and many others. They had so many adventures, ones that seemed to span centuries. These characters, thanks to their magic, were almost immortal. It was such a strange breath of fresh air to the typical fairy tale, Lucy was devouring pages faster than she could process them.

The only thing which remained a constant, was the villain. A dragon, who was a frequent plague to the land and guild. It did not always appear, but whenever it did…

All it left behind was fire.

Lucy was on the edge of her seat laughing as she read a light hearted chapter where Gray the Slayer tried to comically escape the soggy embrace of a water nymph.

As such, when a hand touched her shoulder and she startled, Lucy was turning around with an apology already on her lips. How many times had she gotten caught up reading until they were about to close?

"Oh, I'm sorry, I must have lost track of time aga-" She blinked at the sight of the bookstore manager standing in front of her again, a kindly smile over his face, "Oh hello, sir."

"Apologies for startling you, Miss Lucy." He replied, his smile widening a fraction, "I was just getting off work when I noticed you still curled up here reading, and it is getting a bit late."

He nodded at a clock that was reading six thirty, "You've been here nearly seven hours." He chuckled, "I thought you might want to rejoin the world enough to at least get yourself some dinner."

Lucy blinked as she suddenly realized both the time and the way her stomach was wrapped around her spine and gnawing on it.

"Thank you, Mr. Lewis!" She exclaimed, genuinely grateful for the interruption. As much as she disliked being interrupted when she was reading she disliked being hungry more. Something that had happened more than once in the past as she'd had to head home after everything had closed.

Thanks to the timely interruption though she would have more than enough time to grab a proper dinner and return to her book at home.

She smiled as she slipped her bag back on her shoulder, and carefully tucked her book into her arms, "I really appreciate it." She told him, her mind already starting to wander down roads of what she wanted to eat.

"Not at all." He replied with a friendly smile, "You're one of our best customers. It's only right we look out for you."

He shifted his coat and held the door for her as they both stepped out into the lengthening shadows of evening.

He bade her a friendly farewell and got into his car. His part was over, and he had a cover, and reputation, to maintain. The rest would be left up to the backup he'd called in.

Lucy waved merrily at him, oblivious to any danger in the air, and started walking towards the Panera Bread located in the same strip mall. It was too hot to think about something warm for dinner, but a nice cool sandwich and some fruit salad or something sounded perfect.

Besides, there was less chance of spilling something she didn't want on her book. Always a factor to consider. Crumbs were much easier to get rid of than sauce after all.

She was so engrossed in her plans she didn't immediately notice the gentlemen who casually wandered in her same direction. It was just starting to cool down, and was right after the end of the business day, so she wasn't shocked to find people moving around after work.

It wasn't until she'd purchased her food and was heading home that she actually began to think about it.

At first, she'd thought it was a co-incidence when one of the men, whom she'd recognized as being behind her at Panera, was walking in her same general direction. The condos where she lived were definitely upscale and popular, and she was hardly the only one to walk to and from them to the strip mall.

However, as the shadows lengthened the street got emptier and emptier. Scarily quickly. And it soon became clear that the men trailing her were, in fact, following her.

Her heart pounded as she sped up, and tried to bite back a gasp of fear when they matched her.

Frightened now, she tried to figure out what to do. She couldn't go home. They would follow her there, and as sturdy as her locks were she doubted that would slow them down for long.

That was when she remembered there was a diner not too far away that often had cops hanging out at it. Something about the cheese soup drove them nuts. If she could get there…

Galvanized by her decision she started moving purposefully towards it, praying it was closer than she remembered, and tried to at least maintain an equal distance between her and her followers.

Of course, it didn't quite work out as she'd planned.

Alerted by her sudden wariness and tension, they'd begun to close in around her.

Unsure of what they really wanted, and _really_ not wanting to find out, Lucy bolted.

She didn't look like it, but she was actually a very good runner. She could not only eat distance she could run for quite a ways before getting winded.

And right now it was the only thing between her and who knew what.

Of course, her pursuers weren't slouches either. And had been trained for this kind of thing for years. They kept up with her easily, and began herding her away from the diner, or anywhere public at all, and towards an old church that was being renovated.

Lucy whimpered with fear at the sight of it. She knew she was in trouble. She hadn't even realized she was being maneuvered until it was too late. And shortly she would be cornered.

"What do you want?" She exclaimed, her terror giving voice to what had been going through her head since she'd started running, "Leave me alone!"

They didn't answer her of course. They just closed in.

Panicked Lucy lashed out and kicked the nearest one in the face, sending him flying, even as she pressed against the old gate in front of the door.

For a moment all she could see were the shadowy men closing in on her, and all she could feel was the cool wrought-iron behind her. Then, suddenly, something gave way and the gate opened impossibly back. She yelped in shock as she tumbled backwards, a warm, golden, glow surrounding her as she fell into warmth.

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 **And that's it for chapter one. Lets us know how we did! Kytrin will be posting this on her tumblr page, which is under her name if you want to check it out!**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	2. Where the Wild Ones Live

_**Time for Ch 2! thanks to everyone who showed support for our first chapter!**_

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Lucy was not ashamed to admit the scream that came from her throat when she slammed into the ground sounded anything but human.

She dropped face first into hard, cracked earth, her Panera bag splitting open while her purse emptied its contents into some underbrush. Heart hammering, she pushed herself up on shaky limbs and looked behind her to search for her assailants. Seeing no one around her, she swallowed and rolled onto her knees, panting for breath.

What had happened? One moment she had been pressing against church doors, and the next moment she was... where?

Lucy looked around, climbing to her feet and collecting her scattered belongings. There were trees as far as the eye could see.

Somehow she had managed to land into the woods, and no one else was around. It didn't seem right, but Lucy was too grateful to be out of danger for the moment to think too hard about the why and how.

Peering up at the treeline, a few strange things began to assert themselves as odd. For one, sunlight was filtering through the canopy overhead. Early morning light. Which was impossible, because she had been sprinting to her home at close to 7:30 at night.

None of this seemed possible, and Lucy took a deep breath. Brushing dirt from her skirt and shirt, she plucked leaves from her hair to make herself look a little more presentable since no one was around stalking her.

The next order of business was to locate her phone, and she fished it from her purse a moment later, tapping it on to get reception.

Nothing. No bars, no reception.

Which figured since she was in the middle of the woods...

Frazzled and confused, Lucy had no idea what to do. There was no way she could tell which way was North and which was South. Especially since her internal clock was beyond messed up thanks to this weird sun.

The best she could do was walk until she maybe hit a river.

As Lucy looked for a river that, hopefully, would at least get her back to civilization; there was chaos, if not outright pandemonium, in the celestial realm.

All across the realm spirits were reacting to the gate that had been opened so suddenly. There was excitement, and fear, in them as rumors tore through the starry heavens.

A celestial spirit wizard had been found, and had opened a gate.

What could this mean?

Had the humans found a way to force the gates back open?

No one knew, but the thought was terrifying.

It had been centuries since any human had possessed the ability to summon spirits to their side, let alone open gates on their own. Not since the near apocalypse that had caused the king to seal the gates shut in the first place.

It was a memory that still haunted the spirits. And a story humanity would find only too familiar.

At a time when the stars were open to all who wished to travel to other worlds, there had been a human, Zeref, who had nearly destroyed them all. He had found a way to force the gates to remain open indefinitely, ignoring the spirit's laws about any such thing.

It was something that had initially been met with cheers by the various peoples. At last, they could travel without restriction. Without needing a wizard capable of opening the gates for them. They didn't stop to consider the consequences.

The celestial realm was not like the others. Travel had to be controlled always in order to maintain balance. Without that balance things began to go wrong.

The spirits had pleaded to shut the gates again, but they were ignored. Tensions had grown until finally war had been the result. A war that had led to the loss of many lives, and the spirits sealing their gates shut except to those destined to open them.

And now someone had passed through the gates.

The Celestial Spirit King frowned deeply as he considered his options and turned to his most trusted constellation, "Go Leo, my old friend. Find this wizard and test their worth. I would know if this human is worthy of the stars or if we face another potential war."

The constellation glittered in response, the light glowing and growing in strength until a shape of a man coalesced in the dark sky. His mane of wild orange hair was the first to appear, two feline ears hidden within it.

His body formed and solidified, light personified as golden, shining armor formed last. He was a regal figure, the form of the lion itself. Slowly, his chin lifted and he bent at the waist, dropping a gauntleted hand over his chest, "Of course my king."

In truth, Leo was worried himself about what this could mean. The desperation of the war, the enslavement of the stars to the humans that escaped into the celestial realm, and the result of the sealed gates. There was too much at risk to let something like this go unchecked, and he intended on investigating the human who dared open the forbidden gates again.

He hadn't needed an order from the king. As the leader of the Zodiac, this was something he planned on investigating himself. Especially as he could sustain his form outside of the celestial realm for longer than the other spirits. This just gave him permission.

So with one final nod to his king, Leo departed through the gates to find the human mysterious enough to send ripples throughout the entire celestial realm.

He slithered out of the offending gate, still cracked open behind the human, a sliver of shimmering, yellow light still exposed.

Leo found himself in the woods near the edge of Magnolia. He could tell thanks to the scorched ground and the way the ground was compressed down into hard dirt. The sun was hot overhead, almost desert-like, and it seemed almost natural that a mischievous human would find a way to make his or her way into the most dangerous part Earthland.

This was the battleground between mighty guilds, and the hunting ground of a terrible dragon. Celestial magic or not, Leo had to find this human before something worse did.

Meanwhile, Lucy was stuck between wondering if she'd hit her head or something on that old iron gate, and was dreaming this strange place up, and reality persistently slapping her in the face.

After all, it wasn't like she was likely to dream up a place that felt so hot, even in the early hours, and unforgiving even under the shade of trees.

And she definitely wasn't going to be dreaming about her thirst. Or her hunger, which she'd at least been able to partially take care of. Which meant this had to be real. And if it was real...then her entire world had just turned on its head.

Because reality meant that she really was somehow in an unfamiliar place miles from anywhere even vaguely resembling civilization. And the only way she could've possibly gotten there was through some kind of teleportation.

Which just made her head hurt thinking about.

"C'mon Lucy." She muttered to herself as she shifted her stuff into a more comfortable position, "Whatever is going on there's got to be a rational explanation. Just find a starting point and you're good to go."

Despite her mini-pep talk however, a small whine escaped her throat, "Aw, but I wanna be home reading my book!" She whined pathetically, also to herself as no one else was around, and decided that under the circumstances she could, and would, ignore any and all possible associations with madness talking to herself like that had.

She'd like to see anyone else come up with something better.

She sighed a little and glanced around, hoping for even a landmark to assure her she wasn't going in circles or something.

What she found instead caught her breath.

It was a plane.

At least, she thought it might be a plane. It was made of metal, and in the air, and moving at a decent clip. Though the closer it got the more she thought maybe it was something closer to the helicarrier. Which was weird, but she was willing to go with it.

It was also her very first sign of civilization.

Excited, she rushed forward, hoping to find a clearing to signal them with. If she was lucky they could give her a lift back home and she could pretend the last couple hours or so hadn't happened.

Her relief was neverending when the oddly shaped plane turned in her direction and a wide patch of open earth rested in front of her. Lucy waved her arms and shouted for its attention as she ran past deep slashes in the ground. She paid them little mind, but the writer in her imagination whispered fanciful ideas of some large creature creating those huge rivets.

She wasn't even sure how the ship spotted her among all the woods and trees, but Lucy was so blind with joy she made her way to the clearing, headless of claw marks.

As the heavy plane hovered nearby, Lucy became quite aware it was nothing like an actual plane. In fact that was probably the furthest description of what was actually right in front of her. It was more like a ship.

Its hull had two prongs, and the body was dark and purple in shape. Two black and red wings spun from the very back of the ship which were impractical to carry anything, much less the heavy weight of a ship.

There were two propellers in the back that pushed it forward, however what little Lucy knew about structural engineering, it shouldn't have been able to fly at all. But so long as it was safe, she didn't care what it looked like really. Lucy was too tired, hot and exhausted to complain.

Curling up in her bed, maybe with a glass of wine and a soft comforter sounded fabulous. That, and a nice hot shower.

The sun beat down on her shoulders and Lucy shook her head.

On second thought, perhaps a cold shower would do the trick for her at the moment.

Whatever.

The ship landed, kicking up a fine dusting of dirt that threatened to blind her. She coughed around the mouthful of the filaments clogging her mouth and swore, waving a hand in frustration away from her face.

Coughing up a clod of dirt wasn't exactly what Lucy had in mind when she thought she wanted a meal.

The heart shaped design on the front of the ship split down the center and parted open, giving way to eight people, shadowed by a bright light shining behind them. As far as dramatic entrances went, Lucy found it rather impressive. But she wasn't sure why she was receiving such an involved greeting.

A tall man stood at the front, white hair slicked back into a long ponytail that hung down his back, a single black eyepatch adorned his face. By the way he held himself, he was their leader, and he seemed to exude an air of charisma Lucy immediately didn't trust.

He had the face of a kind man, but held himself with such dignity, Lucy was immediately reminded of the men her father used to do business with. It unsettled her and made her uncomfortable, but she forced herself to bite her tongue when he took long strides in front of her and gave her a small nod of greeting.

"Uhm, hello?" Lucy said, her voice trembling with hesitation. While the man in front of her looked calm and friendly, the others with him all donned expressions of cool detachment.

Some, including a beautiful woman holding a crystal ball, even seemed outright hostile.

The way her sharp eyes followed Lucy's every move, it was as if she were contemplating whether or not to abandon her to her devices in the woods.

"Hello miss," The man straightened, extending a hand towards Lucy. She took it in a very brief handshake, holding on just long enough to be polite. His touch was firm, but cold. Just like a business man with his eye on some goal. He was a shark.

For some reason his single eyed gaze left Lucy feeling like she was chum in the water.

"You are very brave to wander these woods alone," the man continued after his initial greeting, "I take it you need a ride back to the nearest town?"

Lucy swallowed, her eyes slanting over to the rows of his associates. They all gave her a weird feeling, Lucy's stomach clenching down on a sudden flare of intuition that told her perhaps she was better off walking after all. But she wasn't sure when she would find civilization again. She was off in the woods by herself...

Instead she swallowed and caught his first words, using it to buy her some time to size up her would-be rescuers. Could she really afford to be picky? It was probably her remnant fear from being followed earlier that was causing her so much anxiety now. What did she have to fear from these people..

...And their strange Doomsday looking ship?

...Okay, perhaps caution was the better part of valor.

"Brave? Not really?" Lucy swallowed and looked at the man, her throat crackling from thirst. She really was exhausted.

"What's so frightening about the woods?" She asked, her head peering around her back to see around her. The forest was unfriendly and hot, but hardly dangerous from what she had seen.

At those words though, it seemed she attracted the attention of those gathered around. The woman crept in closer to the leader, red lips thinning into a hard line. Her voice dropped, but not nearly low enough for her to actually be discreet.

"Master Hades, we don't have the time to waste here, I can feel it getting hotter ," Her voice came, warning in her tone. The flicker of fear in her eyes was evidence enough there was something in the area worth being afraid of.

"It's true, he'll be here soon. This is his territory," The blond man with wild red yes growled. Something about his words made a shiver run along Lucy's spine.

Who was _he_?

"I have a plan to deal with _him_." Hades replied, a sharp edge of excitement under his words that had Lucy grateful she wasn't the focus of it. She'd had enough of predators for a while. Unfortunately, that left her in a bit of a predicament regarding her transport.

She had absolutely no desire to stick around a place, lost and alone, with no signs of civilization and someone that apparently was enough to terrify these people. On the other hand, voluntarily joining a group of people who reminded her so sharply of sharks probably wasn't very conducive to her continued health.

However, she wasn't given a chance to ponder the situation further when a deafening roar of fury washed over them.

Her heart stopped and her breath caught as instinctive terror gripped her. She didn't know what it was. She'd never heard a sound like that in her life. There was nothing in the natural world that sounded like it. But that only made her terrified instincts howl at her even more. She just wished, in the distant part of herself not consumed by fear, that she understood what they were trying to say.

As it was, she instinctively dropped towards the ground in a crouch when the source of the roaring appeared on the horizon.

She gaped at the magnificent sight swooping towards them with complete shock, unable to compute what she was seeing. Her eyes and her brain argued and warred with each other for what felt like an eternity before there could be no doubt.

It was a dragon.

A real, live, red scaled, fire breathing, dragon.

And he looked pissed.

At least, she assumed from the tooth baring snarl that he was pissed.

It certainly seemed like a safe assumption as Hades and his people abruptly broke ranks and began scrambling around urgently. They were barking orders at each other and their crew as the dragon bore down on them.

Before she could react further, she was picked up by a big, fat, powder pale man and slung over his shoulder.

"Hey! What are you _doing_?!" She yelped, indignant over being picked up and carried like a sack of potatoes.

"Do forgive Kane his lack of ceremony my dear." Hades purred in a way that had her shivering again, "We simply don't have time for niceties now, and you are far safer aboard the ship than you are out there."

He gave her a smile that made her skin crawl as she discovered exactly what it was like to be the focus of his interest, "And once the dragon is dealt with, we'll have a long talk about where you come from and how you know nothing of where you are."

"See she's well taken care of Kane." He ordered as he sped up and moved in a different direction.

"Wait...no!" Lucy cried as Kane carried her off towards the bowels of the ship, "Put me down!"

"Sorry lady." Kane grunted, "I can't do that. Boss' orders. I gotta take care of you. Though I guess I'll forgive you."

"Forgive me for what?!" She demanded, confused and seriously alarmed by this point.

"For throwing yourself at me." The man replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "I guess I can't blame you for not being able to resist such a studly form."

"What?! I didn't throw myself at you!" Lucy shouted, her confusion temporarily forgotten by her outrage, "You picked me up!"

"Well yeah, I picked you up. Boss said to." Came the reply, and Lucy started crying in frustration. Nothing made sense anymore, and talking to this idiot was making her lose brain cells.

"I just wanna go home!" She wailed, only to shriek a little when there was a loud crash against the hull, another deafening roar, and the whole place shook precariously.

It also had the effect of making Kane lose his grip on her and drop her. Which would've been great had he also not started to fall on her. She had just enough time to scream again when a gold blur appeared before her eyes and in an instant she was picked up by a pair of strong arms and carried out of danger.

It took her a moment to register that she was no longer in mortal peril, and look up at her rescuer. This one was a tall man with a wild mane of orange hair and gold armor. The final straw though was the cat ears sticking out of his hair.

She stared at him in complete shock for a moment and promptly fainted.

* * *

 ** _Special thanks to_** ** _our two guest reviewers,_** _ **Alerssa, MadamUranus, Grandwrex, DiagonAlley, Melodymusical8910, Weepingwillowfairy, HalfBlackWolfDemon, Footster26, Princessatj, Mezatron, chelsannful and everyone else who reviews! We read every single word!**_


	3. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

_**Hello! Thanks to everyone who reviewed the first two chapters of Parallels! Here is the next chapter. It's a little longer than the others because we had to combine two chapters since one was way too short.** _

* * *

When she came back around, just minutes later, she was treated to the sight of the dragon peeling metal stripes of the ship from its frame as explosions rocked off its thick hind, bouncing off harmlessly.

Lucy's mouth went dry at the sight, a scream dying in her throat. It was choked down by instinctual terror, something in her hind-brain telling her this was a true apex predator. Compared to this creature, she was nothing.

Its large, powerful body tore into the ship, claws puncturing hard lines through it. A mighty sweep from its tail sent the crew of the ship flying into the burning woods. The dragon let out a huffing noise that sounded more like a monstrous laugh than a roar.

Was it… playing with them?

A hand was steady on her shoulder, startling her from her terrified thoughts. She looked at the owner, a golden armored man with the strange cat-ears. He stood in front of her like a guardian.

His face was drawn tight, feline eyes sharp on the action unfolding in front of him and worry causing his shoulders to tense. Sweat trickled down his neck, matting his bangs down to his forehead and Lucy had a wild thought. He must be baking in that armor.

"You're awake," He said after a moment, throwing an armored hand forward, a burning gust of light crashing into the ground in front of the strange people who were trying to get to her. Those who weren't busy fighting the dragon were coming after her, and that made Lucy anxious.

For whatever reason, this strange man seemed intent on protecting her, which she was grateful, if confused over.

"What's going on?" She squeaked, her voice gaining pitch in terror over the chaos unfolding around her. Reading about adventure was one thing, finding herself trapped in the middle of this out of body experience was another.

Watching a dragon, a real life dragon, crunching down on the metal rigging of a ship as if it were a snack, sent a fresh shudder of dread tearing through her.

The feline man dragged his attention from the fight and put all of it on Lucy. Her mouth went dry at the dire expression on his face, "You managed to stumble on an ongoing war between a wing of the Baram Alliance and the Fire Dragon King."

An odd tickle in Lucy's brain made her spine stiffen at his words, a frown creasing between her brows.

Where had she heard those terms before...?

She was prevented from asking any more questions for the time being when the man scooped her up and jumped out of the way of a tree suddenly gaining a life of its own and making a wild grasp for her.

Her arms banged against the Cat's armor as he jumped out of the way, skidding back just in time to avoid most of the plants. They seemed to have gained a life of their own.

Fire burned at the earth, belching out from the dragon's roaring mouth. It was being devoured by the blond man from before, but at a rate faster than he could consume. Which was strange enough on its own, Lucy's eyes nearly bugged from her head. What was happening to her?

People were conjuring plants, throwing fire, eating fire, creating illusions, there was a cat man and a dragon…

She wanted to scream in frustration, terror making her want to rip out chunks of hair until she woke up.

When the man stopped running, with Lucy bouncing around in his heavy arms, he dropped her gently to the ground and looked into her eyes, "My name is Leo. I know this doesn't make sense but you have to trust me. Those people belong to a dark guild, and they'll do everything in their power to get their hands on you."

"Leo?" She replied, somewhat breathless after their exciting, and bumpy, trip, "As in the Zodiac constellation?"

It was a completely random thing for her to latch onto, and she was aware of that, but with all the other insanity going on she couldn't help latching onto the one thing that was familiar since she'd begun her trip down the rabbit hole.

Seriously, was this how Alice felt? If so, she would never, ever, look at her trip to Wonderland the same again. She may not anyway.

She glanced over at the battling dragon, still easily visible even if the people weren't, and shivered. She'd caught a glimpse of the rage and hate in its eyes while they were escaping and she had no desire to get any closer.

She looked back at Leo, who was staring at her with a bemusement she didn't understand, "Alright Leo." She agreed, deciding that between her current choices he was definitely the best. At least he didn't look like he wanted to eat her or something. That was a definite bonus.

"So now what?" She asked, jumping a little when the dragon belched another blast of fire at his opponents.

"Now we get you home." Leo replied firmly, catching her attention, and was it her imagination or did his expression seem gentler than before? Almost sympathetic?

She wasn't sure, and in the face of going home she didn't really care. Instead she focused her complete attention on what he was saying, excited eagerness coursing through her. Home? Really? It was the best thing she'd heard all day.

"How?" She asked eagerly.

Leo smiled a little at her, his heart going out to her despite himself, "You have to open a gate." He replied gently, figuring that soothing talk would help her frazzled nerves better than anything else at the moment.

"A gate?" Lucy asked, in confusion, and he nodded.

"Yes. You formed one when you came here. You need to create another to get back home."

Lucy shook her head, "But I didn't do anything." She protested, "I was being chased by a bunch of creepy guys by an old church. The gate fell open and the next thing I know I'm in this insane place!"

Leo's eyes widened a little at that. An accidental gate? Surely not. But he could sense no deception about her. Was she truly so powerful that she'd unlocked the seals by mistake?

That was...extraordinary. And frightening.

It was clear that she would need to be watched. No matter what world she was in. And it made him wonder how they had missed the signs of her awakening before now.

No matter. What was important was getting her out of this war zone. As quickly as possible.

"It's alright." He soothed, "You did it by accident, but you did open a gate. Now, let's get a new one open for you. Close your eyes and concentrate..."

Lucy's heart jumped in her chest but she found herself nodding along with the charming lion. She closed her eyes as instructed. She felt the light hands of Leo land on her shoulders. The tops of his gauntlets scratched into her skin a little, but she breathed out a sigh as he guided her.

"Just imagine a door that makes you feel safe. It doesn't matter what it looks like, just envision something in your head that reminds you of home," He continued, his voice a soothing commentary that put her at ease. For that, she was grateful, because he seemed to be the only one willing to try and help her.

She didn't know how it was possible for her to do the things he said, but there was fire all around her and a dragon trying to tapdance all over a battleship just a few feet away from her, so she was willing to suspend her disbelief long enough to wake up.

"Pull the energy from your chest and draw it out towards your limbs," Leo purred, clearly pleased she was able to concentrate in a battlefield.

In actuality, it was her terror which made a rather solid grounding agent. But Lucy wasn't keen on sharing that detail with the lion.

She felt a strange tingle, like a little warm glow ooze through her fingertips and extend out towards her palms.

She... She was doing it?

A door appeared in her mind, but it was hazy and... it didn't look right. No matter what she did, she couldn't think of any door that brought that feeling Leo spoke of. Something that made her feel safe. Something that reminded her of home.

There were no doors in her life that even resembled a feeling like that.

An agonized roar shattered her concentration, and Lucy's eyes snapped open, the spell vibrating through her, unfinished and partially cast. She caught Leo's shocked gaze dragging towards the fight between Master Hades and the dragon. She looked as well.

And what she saw nearly made her jaw drop.

The dragon had been an inch from slicing Hades in half, wicked claws crushing the lower half of the magician's body, the other claw raised to slash down across his throat. But that wasn't the surprising thing.

What was shocking, was that the dragon was backing off.

And getting smaller.

The dragon let loose another roar as its form rippled and shifted down, backing up and growing smaller and smaller until there was nothing but a man standing in front of her, his back turned towards Lucy. A tattered vest and scarf hung around his shoulders, baggy pants hanging low around his hips. His feet were bare as they scurried back.

A shock of pink hair, curled in spiked, unruly locks, slashed at the air and he roared, his hands covering his eyes. Scales were receding into skin, but even from where Lucy stood, she could make out his sharp teeth.

Hades was struggling to sit up, his single eye shining with excitement over how he had managed to dominate the dragon. The air was thick with smoke, burning trees stretching as far as the eye could see. It was a dangerous forest fire, spreading out of control. But no one seemed to care.

"Wait!" Lucy shouted, seeing how Hades had been raising a hand to throw another spell at the prone dragon. She didn't know what caused her to speak out, but she instinctively reached out towards the mythical creature.

The unfinished spell vibrated at her fingers and the dragon-turned-man roared again, his hands dropping from his face. That pink head, topped with curled horns whipped around towards her and she was locked under his dark, narrowed eyed gaze.

She gasped under the intensity of that stare, and before she could stop it, the spell released.

It was almost comical.

The expression on the dragon's face as he looked at her and saw the jet of golden light crash over him was utterly hilarious. But Leo's expression of slack-jawed horror, and Hades' indignant roar both registered in Lucy's mind at once.

And then she was falling once more, dropping back into the ether where a new gate burst open and she toppled through.

But this time she had a companion.

* * *

Lucy yelped as she was abruptly dropped out onto the ground again.

"Ow." She whimpered as she impacted, but the crash wasn't as hard as it could've been. In fact, it was rather soft. And sandy.

Confused she blinked her eyes open and found herself, and the pink haired dragon turned man, sprawled out on a gorgeous beach.

"Well, at least it's not a baking forest," Lucy groaned as she sat up and looked around. She didn't know where this was either, but it didn't appear to be close to the previous war zone, so she wasn't going to complain.

She pulled out her phone hopefully, but it still read no reception. She sighed a little at that, and put it back up. Either she was still in Wonderland, or she was out of range. Given the presence of her new companion she was going to guess she was still stuck in Wonderland. Joy.

At least it was somewhere somewhat more hospitable. Though she had no idea what she was going to do about food, water, or shelter at this point. She'd never exactly needed to learn survival skills like these.

Her companion groaned softly, pulling her attention, and she realized with a start that whatever she did she would need to do it fast and soon.

He was hurt. Badly. She hadn't noticed before in all the confusion, but he'd been punched in the abdomen in a place that looked pretty vital to her, and was bleeding badly from the wound.

She scrambled to his side, taking note of the way he looked at her dazedly for a moment and then slumped into unconsciousness, "Right." She breathed, "Let's get you fixed up if we can. And I hope you don't eat me later."

She pulled off her purse and began going through it for anything that might help in this situation only to blink when Leo appeared in front of her again.

"Leo?" She exclaimed, "How did you follow me?"

The feline gave her a faintly amused smile, "It seems you have a knack for opening gates by accident, but not closing them completely afterwards."

Lucy didn't know what to make of that, but accepted the god given help when it was in front of her, "Maybe we can work on that later. Can you help me with him?"

Leo blinked in surprise, "You want to help him?"

Lucy just shot him a confused look, "Well of course. I mean, he's hurt pretty badly, and I don't have any part of his war. So why shouldn't I?"

Leo opened his mouth to reply, and then sighed. A strange expression crossed his face, a distant sort of wistful recognition in his eyes, Lucy knew she recognized. Leo's hands were curling into fists, hesitation bunching up in his frame, causing him to grow tense. But slowly, he seemed to relax, his thoughts seeming to carry him away.

"There are many reasons." He murmured, "But you don't know them, and it would take too long to explain." He stared at the unconscious dragon and sighed again as he knelt beside him, "I just hope we don't regret this."

Lucy didn't quite know what to make of that reaction. Did Leo personally know the dragon? This response made her uneasy as she recalled the genuine fear from Hades and his people just before the dragon had shown up. Was there a reason she needed to fear the dragon herself? And not just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

She didn't know, and the uncertainty made her nervous.

However, she couldn't just leave him as he was. It wasn't right.

So she would help him as much as she could and try to sort things out once he woke up. If he woke up.

Who was this dragon that inspired fear from everyone around him? Sure, he had been terrifying in his giant lizard form, but like this... Well, ignoring the gaping wound in his side, he seemed almost peaceful. His eyes were closed, his face relaxed, and those sharp teeth were hidden from view.

The horns that curled through his hair disappeared somewhere along the way through their travel, so there was nothing to give away even a hint of something unusual.

The dragon looked like normal man. A normal man with pink hair, but that wasn't all that unusual even in her land.

She listened intently as Leo instructed her on how to clean and disinfect the wound. Apparently for a dragon, healing wasn't always an issue. Lucy found that hard to believe, because it looked like the dragon had suffered through a heart-sacrifice with the hole in his chest, but apparently he would be fine.

Leo disappeared through a gate for a minute, but popped back into existence not a second later, his arms gathered with bandages from wherever he was from.

Lucy sagged in relief as he helped lift the heavy shoulders of the dragon so they could patch him up. She didn't know how she would have managed to stitch him up or maneuver his cumbersome form all by herself without his help.

Once they were all settled, Lucy smoothed a hand against the dragon's cheek, surprised to feel how hot he was. Immediately that drew her concern, afraid an infection had set into the wound and he was feverish, until Leo assured her it was fine. For a fire dragon at least..

When Leo suggested trying the gate again, Lucy found she was too exhausted to try. And she had a sinking suspicion she was not going to be able to get home.

That safe door he told her to imagine... She hadn't had that feeling since her mother died. And before she could get that back with her father, he was gone too.

As far as she knew, doors were the entrances to homes. And Lucy hadn't had a home in a long time.

So they lapsed into silence despite the questions boiling within her and threatening to burst free.

She had so many things to ask him, but she couldn't bring herself to voice a single one. What could she say? The sand shifted under her legs, warming her despite the natural cool air that came from sitting next to a giant body of water.

"Where are we?" She asked quietly, her eyes drifting up towards the sky and fixating on the clouds overhead. Her stomach whined in hunger as she imagined the clouds drifting around in the shape of a hamburger. Panera seemed like so long ago.

Leo settled himself down in the sand, his eyes casting towards the sea. His expression looked troubled and he shook his head, "We're not that far from where we were. We're at Akane Beach."

"The port town Hargeon is just a couple hours west from here," Leo answered and Lucy just nodded, not knowing what any of that meant. Akane Beach? Hargeon? These were all words she didn't understand.

A bubble of distress worked its way in her chest. She felt like crying out of the absurdity she had to endure during this day. There was a bleeding dragon next to her and a celestial... whatever in front of her. She was exhausted from all her hiking, hungry, and thirsty.

She stared sullenly at the ocean in front of her.

Water, water everywhere, and not a drop to drink.

"In case you were wondering, you are in Earthland," Leo answered, "It's a realm parallel to the land you come from, and parallel to many other worlds the stars watch over as well."

He sighed and slid a knee up, propping a hand onto it to relax just a little, "Once in a great while, a human has the power to open the celestial gates and travel to the worlds. I had thought there would never be another to hold such a gift."

As odd as it sounded, Lucy's natural interest and flare for knowledge perked at the story she was being told. Leo didn't know it, but Lucy loved tales. They were exciting, and would distract her from the harsh reality she was currently living.

"Why not?" She asked, eager to get him to continue.

Leo gave her an amused look, but Lucy noted a tinge of sadness seemed to touch his eyes. It was an expression she knew well, a shadow that carved its way into the hearts of those who had seen terrible things. For her, it had been the passing of her parents... For him, she could only guess.

Whatever the reason, spirits could suffer. That much was clear.

She suddenly regretted asking her impulsive question.

"Humans abused their power," Leo said after a long moment, "They ripped the gates open to travel freely between worlds, then they sought to chain the spirits themselves."

"Spirits cannot exist outside of the celestial realm for long, so by keeping the gates open there were many spirits that lost balance and died," Leo confessed, "If you notice there are less stars in the sky, it's because there are less spirits."

He shrugged and his fingers curled together, armor scratching together, "It is odd you bare the gift. I came investigating when the gate opened..."

His darkening gaze fell towards the dragon. Again, that pensive expression took hold of the spirit, "It seemed I was not the only one who sensed it."

Lucy glanced between Leo and the unconscious dragon for a moment, and decided maybe a change in subject was in order, "Why is everyone so afraid of him anyway? I mean, I get he's a dragon, and that's automatically terrifying, but it seems like more than that."

Hopefully that would be a somewhat safer topic than poking at Leo's pain about gates and the stars. Even if it had been unintentional she felt a bit bad about that.

Thankfully, Leo seemed to understand as he smiled a little and the shadows in his eyes eased away a little. Though now that she knew it was there she could tell it hadn't gone away completely. Nor would it ever. She knew that from personal experience.

"The answer to that is complicated." He replied, "And it goes back centuries, but for now let's just say that he now lives up to every stereotype you've ever heard about dragons. Gluttonous, greedy, has a vast hoard...the works."

Great. She'd landed Smaug as her traveling buddy.

And given her luck today he would probably just as soon eat her as look at her. That was something dragons did after all. Eat people. Especially beautiful virgins.

Truly she was in trouble, especially the beautiful part.

"Great." She groaned, "And how likely is he to just transform and sit on me or something?"

Leo actually let out an involuntary chuckle at that, "Not very." He assured her, "The spell that forced him into his current form was a subjugation spell." He frowned a little, "Admittedly, it was incomplete, and I'm still not sure what your magic did when it interacted, but he has to stay in that form unless his master permits him to change."

He shrugged, "Since Hades hasn't made him change back yet I think we can safely assume he either can't or he's out of range. Which means you're safe for now."

Lucy nodded, relieve that at least something was going right.

However, her relief turned to dismay a moment later when Leo stood up, "I'm sorry Lucy, but I have to go now. I have to report what I've found out to the king about you and the gates."

Was it bad that she panicked a little at the thought of him leaving? Under the circumstances she didn't think so. She definitely didn't want to see the one person in this crazy world who had been helpful to her leave.

Something of her feelings must've shown on her face because he gave her a reassuring look, "Don't worry. I'll be back to help you get home. Just try to hang on a little longer okay?"

Lucy swallowed and nodded. She didn't want to be left alone, but she could hardly keep him here. And weird or not she had to make the best of her situation. Which meant she had to try and keep it together long enough to get home.

Maybe she could start with scrounging up some food and water. That would surely make this whole mess more bearable. And she still had her book to occupy her time. That wouldn't be so bad.

So she gave him as brave a smile as she could manage and nodded again, "Alright. Thanks for everything Leo." She replied.

The celestial spirit crouched down in front of her, neither people noticing a slanted eye from the supposedly unconscious dragon cracking open.

Leo gave her a crooked grin, one that was both friendly and disarming. Lucy was charmed by it, and the anxiety in her chest unknotted.

That was clearly what the lion wanted, his hand dropping on her shoulder before pulling away. He stood up, the sun flashing off his armor as if he were wrapped in holy flames. Some sort of divine cat-paladin, sent here to guide Lucy. She didn't really understand it.

"You're unusual for a human, but I like you," Leo's hands flexed into a steady fists. He gave her a careless salute and pulled away, moving further down the beach.

For the first time Lucy actually saw a gate open up before her eyes. Behind Leo it stood like a halo surrounding him. It was a pulsing yellow light, white orbs flaring off and floating like bubbles in the swirling magic. Was that what opened at Lucy's command every time she accidentally fell through a gate?

It was surprisingly beautiful.

"Take care Lucy," His eyes flashed towards the dragon, who was still and unmoving. Leo stared at him skeptically and nodded, "I'll return soon."

And right before her eyes, Lucy watched Leo take a breath and sink a foot into the light, disappearing into the seemingly two dimensional circle of magic. He was gone in a second, body disappearing through the portal as if swallowed whole. If she hadn't known that would happen, Lucy would have been alarmed.

But the portal disappeared right on the heels of Leo's guards fading from sight. There were no signs he had even been there just moments prior. All that was left were his footprints in the sand, which were quickly being dissolved by the rolling ebb and pull of the tide.

The cawing of birds, the beat of the sun, and the soft wind of the salty sea calmed her. For a second Lucy just let herself enjoy the serenity of the moment, soaking in the ocean. Contemplating sinking her toes into the water, a tired smile fell over her face as she tried to hold onto that feeling of relaxation.

A fruitless effort because the dragon took the moment he deemed it safe from celestial spirits, sat upright with such speed, Lucy wouldn't have guessed he had a hole in his side. A startled scream burst from her throat and she fell sideways, scrambling away from him as she startled. Kicking sand everywhere, she must have showered the dragon with a ton of it by her flailing legs. That much was evident by his fervent swearing and batting arms.

Not that Lucy wasn't eating plenty of sand herself. She nearly fell into the ocean itself trying to scoot away from him, a hand on her chest and her shirt sticking to her body in uncomfortable, sandy clumps.

A sharp smile decorated his face, a wide grin that contained a dancing flame and mischievous spirit. He dragged a hand across his face, fathomless eyes peering at her with curious intent. It was like she was staring into the gaze of a snake charmer, and she was the serpent.

Fangs gleamed in the sunny light, brightened by the force of his smirk. Her discomfort seemed to amuse her, and he raised a hand in greeting.

"Yo."

* * *

 _ **Special thanks to everyone who has reviewed! I'm going to use this space to answer questions and comments, sorry if I don't call you all out by name.**_

 _ **Yep you caught us! We have a book theme goin' on for this fic! -**_

 _ **I think you just found out who the dragon was! -**_

 _ **Oh you know what, we originally did have an Alice in Wonderland theme for it going, but I promptly threw that idea out the window when Kytrin wasn't looking, she hasn't killed me yet so I think she's okay with it... -**_

 _ **The Never Ending Story similarities have been brought up more than once. I'll admit I only have a passing knowledge of that. I remember seeing it, I remember the characters, I remember there is a book, but... I don't quite remember the rest. That, and that HORSE. GUHHHH -**_

 _ **I'm so glad every one of you decided to read this fic! It means the world to both Kytrin and I that you dove into this!**_

 ** _Please drop us a line and tell us what you thought!  
_**


	4. The Iliad

_**Alright guys! Here's the next chapter of Parallels! We hope you enjoy it!**_

 _ **As usual, thanks to everyone who reviewed our last chapter!**_

* * *

The dragon took one look at her and threw his head back, roaring with laughter at the state of her rumpled form.

"Gods!" He shouted, arms wrapping around his chest and his heels digging into the sand. Shaking his head clear of the crunchy filaments, he dragged a hand over his face, tears streaming down his cheeks as he laughed hysterically at Lucy's predicament, "Look at that dumb face! I got you good! "

At once, Lucy's natural indignation flared to life over being called dumb. Excuse him? Where did he get off calling her that? He didn't even know her, and this idiot was giddy about scaring her?

This dragon was rude .

"Uhm, excuse me...?" Lucy stared at the man, who's pealing laughter only seemed to intensify in volume. He ignored her, clutching at his side and pointing at her with the other, a mouthful of sharp teeth open to suck in lungfuls of air.

Oh of all the...

"Hey!" Lucy shrieked at him, tempted to throw a handful of sand directly into his rude face, "It's not funny!"

The dragon's giggles tapered to a stop, but a wide grin still decorated his face. His chest heaved under his vest, the dingy scarf wrapped around his neck flowed with the movement and he braced both his hands in the soft ground.

His chin dropped down, disappearing into the bundled cloth around his throat while he pushed himself forward. For whatever reason, his injury didn't seem to bother him. Not like a giant wound to his side should at least.

"Oh but you are," He purred, his smile growing as each second passed, sharp teeth bared at her. Lucy felt a shiver suddenly run down her spine at the sight of those teeth, capable of tearing easily into soft flesh or cracking into bone.

What was most striking about him were his eyes though. They were dark, very, very dark. Such a deep shade, Lucy had no way of identifying what color this eyes were. But they burned, with a simmering hatred that glowed like smouldering coals. They seared into her, both predatory and hypnotizing.

"It's almost a bummer that I'm going to have to kill you now," He pouted at her, but the way his eyes glittered told Lucy he was not sorry at all.

"What?!" Lucy exclaimed, her shock at his nonchalant statement making her blurt the word aloud. She couldn't have heard that right. He was going to kill her? But why?

"Dunno." He shrugged, alerting her that she'd spoken that last part aloud, "Because I feel like it." He grinned at her, a bright sunny grin that really had no business being on her murderer's face.

All at once, Lucy went numb. She wasn't sure if it was shock, terror, or some combination but she just could not move. She could only stare at him in horror. He wanted to kill her, and he was smiling about it. What kind of sick monster did that?

She didn't want to die. She hadn't done anything to deserve to die. Maybe she wasn't the most _important_ person around, but she liked her life and wanted to keep it! Still, she could not seem to get herself moving as he prowled closer. No matter how much her mind screamed it was like her body had completely shut down and there was no responding to it.

At least, it was that way until he was inside her personal bubble.

Then, out of nowhere, the moment he got close enough for her to feel his hot breath her survival instincts surged to life.

She reacted without thinking and in a move that was one in a million, never to be duplicated, she managed to lash out and land a ferocious kick directly over his injury.

He went flying, though not nearly far enough for her tastes, and dropped like a stone. That was more than enough to galvanize her into action and she bolted for her life for the second time in twenty-four hours.

She didn't bother with picking a direction, or planning anything out. She simply ran. As fast as she could. The more distance she had between herself and the dragon the better. If she was supremely lucky he might even give it up and let her go. Maybe.

She kind of doubted it though with the indignant, and pain filled, swearing she heard being roared behind her.

It spurred her on, but she couldn't help feeling a small sliver of satisfaction he hadn't liked her response to his comment. Served the jackass right.

Unfortunately, her lead was all too temporary as he quickly caught up to her. Which was just all kinds of unfair. How fast was he anyway?

She didn't have time to contemplate it though as he tackled her to the ground, a look of hate filled fury on his face, and raised a flame covered fist.

She instinctively screwed her eyes shut, and cringed, waiting for the pain to begin. But it never came.

Confused, she cautiously opened her eyes a crack when nothing happened, and found the dragon sitting there on top of her with a look of confusion on his face that would've been comical under any other circumstances.

"No!" He hissed, horror coloring his voice, as he bathed his fist in flame and tried to hit her only for it to suddenly snuff out the moment it got near her, "No! You're kidding me right?"

Lucy gawked a little as he abruptly sprang off her and proceeded to bash a coconut tree to smithereens. What was going on? She didn't understand. Not that it was anything new currently. Though she certainly wasn't going to complain.

"No! No, no, no, no, no!" He roared indignantly as he swung around at her, a dark look twisting his face, "Fire dragon roar!"

Lucy had just enough time to squeak in horror as the column of flame shot at her, but just like his fist, it moved around her in a sphere of protection. It wasn't even hot. She was somehow protected from it.

She had no idea how this could be, but she embraced the miracle with both arms and went limp with relief. He couldn't hurt her. He couldn't kill her. She was going to live.

Those thoughts spun around and around in her head as the adrenaline coursed out of her. They were all she cared about too. He could bash palm trees all day long if he wanted as long as he couldn't kill her.

Unfortunately, he didn't seem care about her desire to cling to any kind of relief as she suddenly found him directly in her face and glaring at her intently. Not that she expected anything different at this point.

"You bound me." He growled intently, "Release me."

Lucy blinked, "I what?" She asked in confusion.

"Don't play stupid!" He yelled, waving his arms in a way that was somehow both threatening and reminded her of a five year old having a temper tantrum, "I'm bound to you!"

Okay, she still wasn't sure what that meant in his context, but she could guess, and a smirk worked its way over her lips. He was bound to her? Like that subjugation thing Leo had talked about? Which, apparently among other things, meant he couldn't hurt her?

"No." She replied primly, enjoying the way his face registered shock at actually being _told_ no, before morphing into the definite beginnings of a temper tantrum.

"Even if I knew how, which I don't," She continued, ignoring his growing temper, "I wouldn't. I'm not dumb enough to let a guy who just said he was going to kill me actually have the freedom to do it."

She got up and brushed herself off, her smirk every bit as sharp as his had been earlier. Was it petty she was enjoying crushing his hopes and thwarting him so much? Probably. Did that make it any less satisfying? Not even slightly.

There was a certain amount of satisfaction she felt at the way his eyes followed her, resentment hot in his eyes. In fact, feeling bold, she turned and blew a raspberry at him.

The dragon's eyes went wide at the sight of her ballsy courage, and his entire head exploded into flames. Lucy jolted at the sight of his head on fire, his arms crossing over his chest and his eyes narrowed into sharp points of fury.

"Argh!" He screamed, snapping his fangs furiously at her and stomping off down the beach, kicking a huge wave of sand into the air. Lucy watched his bare feet slam down into the sand, the heat from him coming off hot enough to harden the sand enough to make the surface look glassy.

He didn't seem to pay it any mind as suddenly the fight drained from him and he sat down heavily in the sand and hunched over his knees. The dragon drew them up to his chest, tan arms wrapping around his legs and chin resting on the top of them.

Now he was sulking?

The real question was if he was sulking because he was stuck to Lucy, or if he couldn't kill her. Her eyes rolled up to the sky, landing onto the tree he had all but demolished in his fit of temper. Catching sight of something familiar on the ground thanks to his fists beating against the tree, Lucy was unable to stop the smile from lighting her face.

Coconuts.

Perhaps he hadn't intended on helping her, but Lucy was not one to look away when she was in desperate need for something to drink. She had enough odds and ends in her purse. Not to mention there were plenty of rocks around to help her crack open the stubborn nut.

She gathered the ones fallen on the ground, stuffing another in her purse to save for later.

"Hey," She called out to the dragon. His pink head ducked even lower between broad shoulders, his chin turning just enough to give her a mean look before whipping back around.

Lucy thought she saw the patch of ocean he was glaring at begin to boil.

He continued to ignore her, even as Lucy walked up behind him. Still exercising some caution, since she didn't know the particular rules of the spell keeping him in check, she stopped just out of his arms reach. Not that she figured it would do her any good if he could attack her. He was both blinding fast and strong. Something he had proven in an instant.

"Excuse me?" She called out again.

The dragon muttered something uncomplimentary under his breath, but she was able to make out the word 'fat.'

There was a quote Lucy was fond of, 'Never poke a sleeping dragon in the eye, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.'

That was precisely what she was about to do.

Lucy hurtled one of her spare coconuts at the back of the dragon's rude head, making him yelp and rock forward. His head was hard enough to cause it to split in half right through the center, and Lucy had just enough time to marvel at her good luck before he was whipping around on her.

"What the hell you crazy human!" He spat out, his hands raising up to his head, fingers fisting in pink locks, "What did you just throw at me?"

Lucy walked over towards him and bent down, scooping up both halves of the coconut before they could be trampled or filled with sand from his new fit. She arched an eyebrow at him.

"Just a coconut, unfortunately I couldn't toss some manners at you," She muttered.

She held out one half of the coconut to him in a peace offering, his eyes slanted into sharp, distrustful slits before his greed got the best of him and he snatched it from her hands, crunching down it, hull and all.

Lucy tried not to gawk at the sight of the dragon, and she really should learn his name at some point, crunching down half a coconut hull. That was some fairly impressive jaw power. Which made her all the gladder that he couldn't direct it at her. She was definitely soft and squishy compared to him. Even in his current form.

She shook her head a little and decided applying herself to her half of the coconut was better than just gawping at him. So she quickly lifted her half of the coconut to her lips, pleased that so much liquid was still in it, and drank deeply.

After who knew how long without a drink of any kind it was the best tasting thing she'd ever had. She sighed softly in bliss and eagerly downed it all. She had a swiss army knife in her purse she could use to slice at the flesh.

It wasn't any kind of royal feast, but it still refreshed her, and gave her a bit of extra strength. Though she was fast running out of steam.

Between the messed up times and all the excitement she'd had since arriving she was wiped. But she knew better than to try and bed down without building herself at least a rudimentary nest. And preferably finding something else to eat with her coconuts.

She smiled at the surly looking dragon, who was still scowling at her, "That's better." She eyed him contemplatively for a moment, "So...what's your name?" She asked curiously.

The question startled him, "You want to know my name?" He asked incredulously, and his eyes narrowed distrustfully again, "Why?" He demanded.

Lucy sighed and shook her head, "Because I thought maybe it would be better than saying 'hey you' all the time?" She quipped and rolled her eyes, "But whatever. I'm going to see if I can find some more food or something. You can stay here and sulk if you want to."

If he was going to be rude she saw no reason why she couldn't give back as good as she got.

With any luck she would soon be on her way home and she could forget this nightmare ever took place.

With that thought in mind she turned and started moving inland. However, she didn't get very far, maybe a hundred yards, before she heard a startled yelp. She looked back over her shoulder and her jaw dropped at the sight of the dragon on the ground apparently being dragged along in her wake.

What. The. Hell?

There was no way that was right. She could not be seeing proof that he couldn't leave her vicinity.

But that was exactly what it was. No sooner had she thought that than he was on his feet, "What the hell's the big idea lady?" He snarled at her.

"How would I know?" She snapped back, her own temper finally fraying, "I didn't ask for your ass to be dragged along behind me you know! You know just as much as I do! Maybe even more since this stuff actually makes sense to you!"

It was getting frustrating. As soon as she thought she was being given a break, something slapped her right in the face to correct her of that misconception. This was a situation that was not bound to work well for either of them.

"I have no idea what's going on and suddenly I'm being told that a dragon, whose name I don't even know is my literal ball and chain," Lucy exclaimed, shrieking her frustration at him. The dragon pulled a grumpy face, his hands slamming down on his ears and he 'tsk'd at her. As if he had something better to do with his time.

Who even knew with dragons.

"Gods, you are so noisy have you even heard yourself talk?" The dragon complained, his lips pulled down in a grumpy frown. Lucy swore if she got her hands on another coconut, this one she was going to cram down his mouth whole.

"Fine, I don't usually tell my name to humans but since you're being so annoying about this whole thing, my name is Natsu," He scoffed, dark eyes fastening intently on her.

What.

The way he was looking at her told Lucy he was expecting something. Some form of reaction. Maybe shock and fear. In fact, he began to look a little disappointed when she wasn't trembling in terror.

"I'm Lucy?" She asked, voicing her name more as a question in response to his expectant look.

At her nonchalance, his jaw dropped open, his shoulders rolling down and his eyebrows climbing into his hairline. It was as if he couldn't even believe she had no idea who he was.

"Seriously, that's it?" He gestured towards her, looking deeply disappointed for some reason. Natsu waved his hands around and Lucy was reminded of a Vegas magician thanks to the wild motions he made.

"You don't know who I am? Really?" Natsu demanded, hands dropping down onto his hips, the one on his left side falling a little lower to avoid touching his injury, "What kinda rock have you been living under girlie?"

"Lucy," She immediately corrected, finding she didn't much care for the taste 'girlie' left behind in her mouth. Straightening up her shoulders as much as possible. Trying to look as imposing as possible when faced with a dragon was a daunting task, especially since he looked totally unfazed.

"And no I don't, I'm not exactly from around these parts," She insisted, "This isn't my world, I just sorta... fell through."

Natsu stared at the delicate, almost fragile, looking human before him in shock. Another world? This brainless looking bit of fluff was the one who had opened the gate?

There was no way.

The power surge from that gate had been enough to alert him halfway across his territory. How could a girl, who looked like she should be at home in a palace being waited on by servants, have done that?

And yet there was no denying how powerful that surge of magic had been. As evidenced by how quickly Hades and his goons had found her. There probably wasn't a single alarm she hadn't set off when she'd done that.

And he was bound to her. Wonderful.

At least he had an idea of how it had happened now. No doubt that gold light from her spell had been a bad attempt at going home. That much holy energy concentrated in place would've acted like a magnet for Hades' subjugation. Holy spells always gravitated towards greater concentrations of the same kind of magic. And anyone who could open a gate between worlds would be the equivalent of a bonfire next to a candle.

He was very carefully not going to think about how that 'candle' had been successfully subjugating him before her interference.

Not that he was going to be letting her know that. There was no telling what she would do with the knowledge. And he was already at enough of a disadvantage as it was. At this point he wasn't even sure if he would be left behind if she did go back to her world.

"Hmph. No wonder you don't know anything." He snorted derisively instead, crossing his arms as he thought about what to do.

The 'smart' thing would probably be to play nice and try to get her to loosen, if not break, the bond. Except he didn't want to play nice. He was pissed off over being bound, and annoyed he was stuck following this ignorant little girl everywhere.

Still, there was no reason he couldn't have some fun with it.

He turned a bright, toothy, grin on her that had her paling and taking a step back involuntarily, "But at least that explains a few things!" He told her cheerfully, enjoying her confusion over his apparent sudden change of mood.

"Explains what?" She asked, but he just cackled and stepped into her space, "Well, c'mon! I'm not gonna get any rest until you get whatever you wanted to do done right? So let's go!"

He grabbed her wrist, making sure it wasn't in a threatening way, and abruptly tore off, pulling her in his wake.

Natsu dragged the flimsy little mortal behind him, a wicked smile darkening his face as he pulled her along. She might have solidified the spell on him, but there were ways to get rid of it. Hades was the one who cast it, and if the crunchy little whelp fancied having himself a pet dragon, he would gladly give him the option of trying his hand again.

It taught Natsu just a touch of humility to realize perhaps he shouldn't play with his food. But just crushing slime like Hades wasn't as satisfying. Natsu had wanted to drag it out a little...

...Which was what landed him in this situation in the first place.

Lucy was a problem. But not an insurmountable one. He just had to figure out a good way to use her, before she realized how she could use him. Until then, he was going to hold his tongue on his identity.

He grinned with a ferocity that left him breathless. As annoying as it was, it had been a very long time since he had this much fun. His fingers crept up towards the ragged scarf looped around his neck, his heart fluttering in excitement.

This was an adventure, and at the very least it would be interesting. There was no doubt Natsu would have his work cut out for him to try and figure out a way to crush his new enemies, the celestial princess included, but whatever happened...

It was going to be exciting.

* * *

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	5. The Importance of being Earnest

_**"The Importance of Being Earnest "**_

 _In which Natsu is anything but..._

 _ **A/N: Wow everyone! There has been a lot of promise for this fic! You all seem very interested in it, and that really keeps us motivated!**_

 _ **Here is the next chapter. Sorry it's a little late on FF, I definitely crashed early last night.**_

* * *

Lucy didn't know what had gotten into the demented dragon's head, but it didn't take long for her to rebel against him dragging her around. She dropped her feet and dug her heels in, despite nearly having her arm ripped out of her socket when she did so.

"Hold on!" She snapped, wondering vaguely how she hadn't lost it yet, and jerked her hand out of his, "I don't know what you think you're doing, but you're not hauling me around like that!"

She poked him in the chest, "I don't know you. I don't trust you. And I'm definitely not letting you drag me around because you've got some demented idea in your head!" She shouted, her voice rising with every word, "I've had the day from hell. I'm hot. I'm tired. And I would kill for some decent food and something cold to drink!"

By the time she was done her chest was heaving, her teeth were bared, her face was flushed, and she felt somehow a little better. Maybe it was the stunned look on his face. Though she didn't know why he was so surprised. Hadn't she just said before this latest discovery that she was going to find food?

Maybe he just hadn't expected her to stop him?

She didn't know, and she didn't care. She just wanted a chance to relax, eat, and get some sleep. Preferably without anything else falling on her head today.

"Jeez Luigi you don't have to shout about it."

The look on her face must've promised the slow and painful death she was contemplating over that comment because the big, bad, dragon actually paled fractionally and started chuckling nervously.

"I mean, this is the way to Hargeon." He continued, his superior tone ruined by his faint twitching, "Unless you want to stay here and live off the land?"

Hargeon was an actual city?

Leo had called it a port, but somehow that hadn't translated into civilization for her. Now it did. And it sounded like the best thing she'd heard all day.

Even if civilization was different for this place than she was used to it had to have the basics. And the basics were all she cared about. She might even get a bath. Oh, the thought of a bath had her in raptures. She could just picture it.

Lucy's entire expression lit up eagerly, and this time she was the one grabbing the wrist as she tore off in the same direction he'd been going a minute ago.

She ignored his startled yelp as visions of food, and cold drinks, and baths, and beds danced before her eyes. Heaven.

Unfortunately, reality reasserted itself a few hours later as soon as she laid eyes on the absolutely adorable town. Seriously, it looked like something out of some of her favorite alternate history novels. Some of the people were even dressed in period clothing.

However, seeing all that had her realizing one major roadblock.

Money.

She didn't have any.

Not the kind that would be accepted here anyway.

Natsu ignored her dose of reality as he marched on ahead of her until running into what looked like an invisible barrier.

He scowled and rubbed his nose as he glanced back at her, "Now what?" He demanded grumpily. She was in civilization. Wasn't she supposed to be happy now?

"I don't have a way to pay for anything." Lucy admitted, wanting to cry at the complication. So close and yet so far.

Oh for...seriously? That was her problem?

Though he supposed he couldn't entirely fault her. She had said something about falling through by accident, so she probably hadn't made any provisions for being here.

He growled under his breath, but kept his thoughts to himself. He didn't want to re-visit that moment when she'd reminded him eerily of _HER_.

Just the thought sent shivers up his spine.

Instead he grumbled a little more, and crossed his arms, "Fine." He huffed, "I'll get whatever you need."

He hated sacrificing any portion of his hoard for a measly human, but he couldn't ignore this situation. And if it got her out of his hair faster so be it.

Natsu could hardly remember a time he actually paid for anything he couldn't just take. His cheeks puffed out as he peered around the little mortal town. It was the very definition of quaint, and it made Natsu's skin crawl to be milling around with so many people. There wasn't anything wrong with that he supposed, but there was definitely something about it that put him on edge.

Instinctively his hand crept up towards his tattered scarf, his heart jumping into his throat. It had been so long since he had travelled with someone, never before had it been a human. Not since-...

He forced his thoughts away and watched with genuine amusement as Lucy expressed her happiness by doing some weird dance thing. Cocking an interested head towards her, he watched as one leg kicked up and she clasped her hands under her chin like a smitten maiden.

Was this how all humans acted? Or was she the exception?

Regardless, he smirked. He couldn't wait to show her how he got merchandise.

Not that he actually ever bought merchandise in the sense she meant. But then he hadn't specified how he was doing that had he? This was going to be _fun_.

He blinked a little as he realized just how easily he was getting into the anticipation, and feeling amused by Lucy's antics. They would've just annoyed him earlier. He realized with a jolt that the last time he was in his human form was just after the Celestial war when Zeref perished and…Igneel...

And he remembered, vividly, how passionate his feelings were in his human form. Feelings he'd shut away since he'd stopped changing. Feelings that were now swarming him.

He glared at a potted shrub on a vendor's cart and watched as the plant burst into a cheery flame. The owner let out a horrified gasp and threw it to the ground, desperately trying to stamp it out. Feeling a little humored, as the man's frantic yelps pulled him out of his black thoughts, he directed Lucy down a different path happily distracted.

Better not to let her see him blowing up spice stands for amusement.

Petty though he knew it was, Natsu relished in it.

"You're being nice," Lucy's eyes narrowed in suspicion as she allowed him to guide her down a random street. Her eyes scanned over the dragon's body, as if looking for a coin purse or wallet.

Where did she think he put it? He had just been a dragon less than a few hours ago and he looked like a grizzly wartime patient with a hole ripped out of his side. There was no place for him to hold a bag of Jewel.

He just gave her a wide smile, "Why the suspicion?"

The look she gave him was absolutely frigid, which he supposed was a little fair considering he announced his desire to kill her. Something which hadn't waned even in the slightest and was only shelved for the time being.

"You not only tried to attack me, twice, but you also called me fat," Lucy said sharply, her eyes narrowing into such deadly slits, the dragon felt like taking a large step back.

Oh well crap, yeah he did do that. But that was only because she had landed on him when they dropped out of the gate right before he passed out. He had her to thank for his concussion.

His lack of response to that did not endear him any to Lucy. If anything, his widening smile, only made her more suspicious. If that were possible.

Whatever he was planning it would be trouble. That was for sure.

And sure enough, he turned his shit eating grin on a nearby vendor, one selling various kinds of food and drink, and without changing expression grabbed the man by the front of the shirt and slammed his head against the countertop. Hard.

She gasped in horror at the sight, though she would later wonder why she was surprised at his behavior at all, "Natsu! What are you _doing_? Stop it!"

The dragon just glanced at her and smirked wickedly as he shoved the bleeding man away and began cheerfully gathering up a good meal.

"Well that's one thing taken care of!" He exclaimed happily, "C'mon Loopy! Let's go eat!"

Lucy glanced between Natsu and the man, horrified at what had just taken place, "How could you do such a thing?!" She demanded, and Natsu's smile slipped a little, "Huh? What's your problem now?"

"My problem?" She repeated, unable to believe that he didn't know exactly what the problem was, "My problem is you assaulted that man and are _stealing_ from him!" She shouted, ignoring the other people watching, "You said you would _pay_ for everything! So apologize to him and pay!"

"And my name is Lucy!" She jabbed her finger at the poor vendor, and Natsu actually found himself taking a jerky step towards him, the first traces of an apology on his lips before he realized what he was doing and scowled at her.

"No way in hell!" He snarled back, "I said I'd get you whatever you needed. It's your problem if you don't like how I do that! Now c'mon!"

"No way!" Lucy shouted back, not aware that they were snarling in each other's faces by now, "That's not what you said! And this is wrong! I'm not budging until you do the right thing!"

Natsu let out a frustrated half roar, pissed that she was ruining his fun, "Fine then!" He snapped, and grabbed her around the waist and slung her over his other shoulder, "I'll just carry your fat ass!"

He ignored her outraged shouts and kicking as he stomped off.

" _Excuse me!?_ " Lucy shrieked as she bounced around on his hard shoulder, his arm wrapped firmly around her waist, fingers digging into the waistband of her skirt.

She let out a new, sudden shriek when she felt an airy breeze and remembered certain realities over wearing skirts. And Natsu was hauling her over his shoulder without a single care to Lucy's sensibilities.

"Natsu! Let me down right now!" She beat her fists onto his strong back, ignoring the vibration of his growls as she kicked and tried very hard not to give any of the spectators a show. They were making quite a scene now.

"No," came the dragon's stubborn growl, and her frustration mounted. Natsu was a brute and a bully, neither of which Lucy ever had any patience with. During her time as an heiress, she had to deal with men and women both who thought the world of themselves. Never once had they stopped to give anyone they deemed lower than themselves a second thought.

She didn't escape that life just to have this violent, evil, brat make her fall into the same trap.

She grabbed a handful of his scarf and yanked backwards as hard as she could, making his head jerk back. But strange enough, it was almost as if she had pulled his reins. Natsu stopped on a dime, and in less time than it took to breathe, he had dropped her in a heap on the floor.

Groaning at the rough treatment, she slid her eyes towards him. But he wasn't paying even the slightest bit of attention to her. Instead, he was inspecting his scarf, the fabric being held tightly between his hands. The expression of intensity on his face was so focused, he didn't even realize the murmuring crowd that had gathered around him. Was that worry Lucy saw, pinched around his eyes?

He was tuning out to everything around him, which made her wonder what was so captivating about his scarf, and as such, didn't notice the attack behind him until an icy storm of birds struck him square in the back.

Lucy's eyes widened at the display of magic when he staggered forward, a vicious snarl ripping from Natsu's lips. And she remembered suddenly right then. That even though Natsu couldn't kill her... He could kill anyone else who pissed him off.

And he looked very angry.

"Fool." The white haired man who had thrown the ice attack at Natsu sneered haughtily, "Did you really think that we of Lamia Scale would allow you to harass our citizens and steal from them?"

Lucy wasn't sure who this guy was, and wasn't really a fan of his condescending tone, but she appreciated the way he was trying to watch out for the people. That was quite a bit better than the ill tempered brat she was stuck with.

Natsu, however, did not agree.

"Oh you just made your last mistake buddy!" The enraged dragon snarled, fire starting to drip from his mouth.

It was bad enough he was stuck being bound to miss morals over there. It was bad enough she wasn't afraid of him and kept spoiling his fun. It was bad enough she also wouldn't get out of his face and insisted on challenging him on everything. It was even bad enough that she'd had the gall to touch his precious scarf.

But this? Oh this took the cake!

He was pissed, and here was an arrogant, condescending, jerk of a human trying to talk down to him. One that was also squishy, and not in the least bit protected.

He bared his fangs and roared, starting to lunge forward only for a gold blur to interpose itself between him and his intended prey.

"Get out of the way!" He roared at her, raising his fist to strike only to remember at the last moment he couldn't.

Lucy's angry brown eyes locked with his as she spread her arms, "I'm not letting you touch him." She told him quietly, intently, and her skin began to glow a soft gold, "You're not going to touch anyone in this town!" She growled, "You'll have to go through me first!"

And Natsu felt shock run through him again as his fires went out without his say so, and he dropped out of his attack position. It was as if something gripped him, forcing his submission. The spell, he realized - with enough magical force behind her words, she could make him do anything.

"Lucy..." He murmured, stunned that she'd actually stopped him. Him. The one not even Titania Erza or the popsicle could stop fully.

What kind of insane willpower did they grow in her homeworld? No one should be able to stop him. He was the infamous demon dragon king End! No mortal should be able to even make him pause!

Even with a bond it shouldn't be possible without a considerable use of magic. And yet this slim slip of a girl had actually enforced her orders.

He couldn't even feel a trickle of smoke in the back of his throat. Whatever Lucy had done to smother his flames, feeding her magic through the bond to try and push her will over his... He didn't like it.

Slowly, he backed off, his nose crinkling in the remnants of a snarl. His gaze was steady on Lucy, unable to go through her like he so desperately wanted. It almost wasn't fair. This frosty bastard had dared to hit him and now he wasn't even allowed to turn him into a smoked fillet?

His hands balled up into fists and a furious snarl tore through his throat, "Fine then!"

He wasn't going to tell her anything. Past his initial shock over her domination, she didn't need to know anything about the power she held over him.

Even that was more than enough of a clue.

Resentment boiled its way in his chest, his arms crossing over his chest while Lamia Scale slid around them. Natsu gave the gathered wizards a disinterested look.

The moment he was able to transform again, he was going to return to Hargeon and flatten this stupid town and it's idiotic guild.

But before then, he was going to destroy Lucy. Gods, she was just so annoying he didn't understand it. Where was this weird moral compass she had coming from? She seemed to have it in her head that one thing was right while another was wrong. What did it matter if it yielded the same results?

"I'm not apologizing though," He said stubbornly, arms sliding over his chest.

Lucy sighed as she dropped her arms, warily watching him for a long moment. She didn't trust him not to attack once she'd relaxed her guard, but when he made no further moves she slowly relaxed and turned to the wizards, or whatever they called themselves, with a half smile, "Uh, sorry about all that." She told them apologetically, "And I'm really sorry about the vendor Natsu beat up. We'll be glad to give everything back."

She glanced around and winced slightly as the spilled goods around them, "Uh, on second thought maybe that's not a good idea..."

"Did you say...Natsu?" One of the wizards asked, a tall man with a bald head, a long beard, and a kind smile. Though at the moment he appeared more shocked than anything.

Lucy belatedly remembered that Natsu's name was known, even if he didn't often tell people what it was, and indeed the dragon was giving her a positively poisonous look.

"Ah, yes?" She replied, uncertainly, and shook her head, "It's a really long story."

The man chuckled and dropped a hand on his white haired companion's shoulder before he could say anything, "I'm sure it is." He agreed gently, "And you look like you've had quite a day." He smiled and extended a hand, "I'm Jura of the guild Lamia Scale."

Lucy smiled back, feeling a warmth similar to what she'd felt from Leo from this man. Certainly there was nothing creepy or shark-like about him. Not like with that Hades guy and his friends. His smile reminded him more of her mom in a strange way.

She took his hand, "I'm Lucy. It's nice to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine Lucy." Jura replied, "And this is Lyon and Sherry."

Lucy started to reply, but immediately blushed brightly when her stomach made it's complaint over the lack of food very audible. Though Jura didn't seem to take offense. The tall mountain of a man just chuckled again, "Perhaps you would be willing to tell your story over something to eat?" He offered, "I confess to quite a bit of curiosity over how you came to be traveling with Natsu."

Lucy hesitated, uncertain if she should trust Jura given her rocky introduction to this world, and what Leo had said about gate travel. Jura must've picked up on it immediately because he bowed slightly, "You have my word of honor that nothing will happen to you. There's an inn not far from here. Very public, and they serve the most wonderful seafood you've ever had."

Lucy's stomach whined again, and decided for her. Maybe it was risky, but she had to trust someone sometime. And Jura didn't give her the same feel Hades had. That was a huge point in his favor.

"Thank you. I would be delighted." She replied sincerely.

* * *

 _ **Okay! Special thanks to all the lovely people who reviewed! A lot of people had questions for us, so I'll do my best to answer them here!**_

 _ **The question we recieved the most was basically "WTF NATSU WHY?!" - this is a long story, and the characters will be taking a journey on their own to move past their emotional hurdles.** __**Also no, Natsu doesn't eat people.**_

 _ **As for how Lucy gets her money, you can see she will have to get very creative about it.**_

 _ **Thank you everyone for being so enthusiastic with your questions! I won't use this space all the time to answer questions, but I did want to address those ones!**_

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	6. A Tale of Two Cities

_**"A Tale of Two Cities"**_

 _Story time  
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 ** _A/N: Thanks to everyone who waited patiently for an update! FF was down so I couldn't get the update to you last night. But we hope this still satisfies you. And we hope it answers some questions for you too, but not too many._**

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It was strange to be asked to eat with virtual strangers, but the wide berth they were suddenly being given at the mention of Natsu's name made her cautious enough. She was beginning to suspect what Leo had warned her earlier about Natsu was true. And after that fiasco at the vendor's stall, she was not at all inclined to pass up on an opportunity to learn more about him.

Natsu wasn't inclined to share with her, so perhaps someone who knew something about this world, would. Not that she was hoping for much. It seemed everyone was surprised to even see Natsu. Much less have him standing there, almost peacefully. Except for the expression on his face, which alternated between blind rage and cackling mischief as he worked on frightening the curious onlookers.

The two others who were with Jura were also tense, and the one named Lyon looked supremely worried. He turned around to speak to Jura privately, and she was able to make out the words "Gray" and "Fight."

Jura nodded in agreement as something in Lucy's brain tickled at the thought of the word 'Gray.' Now where had she heard something so familiar?

A growl from Natsu interrupted her thoughts, her eyes falling over to him and dropping over his form. There was a line creasing between his brows, his expression black and eyes boring into the back of Lyon's skull.

There was something about this news troubling Natsu, and Lucy only wished she knew what it was. She would give anything to be able to understand him. But she was exhausted, and the temptation of a warm bed, hot meal and shower were all too appealing to her.

So she put away all thoughts about Natsu and the madness of everything going around her as she approached Jura. The man nodded and gestured with a large hand, their odd progression moving through the crowd.

She turned behind her to ensure Natsu was still with her, but he was walking as far away as the seal would allow, still very well within sight.

Jura calmly walked Lucy to the Inn, carefully keeping his hands tucked into his sleeves, and tried to keep his posture as unthreatening as possible. The tired looking young woman with him looked liked she'd been proverbially through the ringer, if not literally. And given her disheveled state he was willing to bet her literal day hadn't been much better than her emotional one.

It was an altogether odd situation. She'd fairly glowed with magical power when she'd commanded Natsu, which by itself was mind-boggling, and yet she didn't carry herself with the confidence most wizards did. Just who was she?

One thing was for sure, he would have to tread delicately. He'd noticed her wariness and hesitation, another clue she'd had a rough time lately, and knew he would have to be at his most gentle and honest to win her trust. Anything else would frighten her off.

He smiled as he held the door for her, and let her pick a table herself. He made no hostile move as they got seated, and gave several suggestions, but didn't push her to pick one. Something he was reasonably sure she'd noticed by the wry look she shot him, and his own lips twitched in response when he made a point of ordering communal pitchers of drink and drinking first.

"You're either trying very hard to get me to trust you, or you really want me to think you're not a threat. Which amounts to largely the same thing." Lucy told him wryly, slightly amused by all the effort the big man was going to, but not enough to beat around the bush.

It had been a hard day.

"It's a little of both." Jura admitted easily, "You don't appear to know who, or what, we are so you're unlikely to know our reputations. And if you don't know that then you wouldn't have a way of knowing we're not the enemy."

He shrugged a little, "I can think of no other way to prove it than show you."

Lucy nodded, something in her relaxing a fraction at the big man's honesty, "Fair enough." She replied and took a bite of the appetizers that had just been set out. She paused a moment to blissfully savor the taste of stuffed mushroom, and focused on the three she was seated with.

Natsu didn't count. He was sulking at a table all by himself when he wasn't stuffing his face. Ugh. Were all dragons that gross?

"So what would you like to know first?" She asked, ready to get the real reason they were here started. Information was the price of this meal and she had to pay.

Jura, however, just shook his head, "You misunderstand me. My curiosity is my own, but if you don't want to say then I won't demand the information from you." He smiled at her kindly, "I truly only wish to help."

Lucy smiled back, deciding she liked Jura more and more, "I'm sorry if I seem a bit paranoid. It's been a weird day, and honestly right now except for one person not here I'm not sure who to trust." She eyed him for another long moment before sighing, "It started back in my homeworld..."

So she told him everything she knew. How she had been followed on her way back home from the store, the fall into this world, and being found by Master Hades and his guild. Then Natsu's ferocious appearance, and the helping hand of Leo. It all sounded ridiculous when she said it aloud. Like something straight out of one of her fantasy novels.

No one around her batted an eye though, although the snarling munches from Natsu seemed to die down. Apparently her story warranted enough concentration from even him to gather his attention. Jura was staring at her in shock and awe, an expression reflected on Lyon's face.

"I see," Jura frowned once she was finished, his eyes on Natsu. It was strange having the dragon in the same room as them, much less in a form so... vulnerable. He knew dragons possessed the ability to turn into a human form, but no one had seen what the Dragon King looked like in centuries.

"Strange as it may sound, you have been very lucky Ms. Heartfilia," Jura put his hands together calmly, drawing his attention back to her, "These lands have known hard times. Lamia Scale does its best to protect the locals against dragon and demon attacks alike. From the sounds of it, you landed on the edge of Magnolia, right in the heart of Natsu's territory."

"If you were very lucky though, you might have landed in the town of Magnolia itself, where perhaps your life might have taken an easier turn," Jura looked at Lyon, who scoffed and lifted his nose in the air.

The white haired man's eyes slanted towards Natsu though, his eyes narrowing at him just a fraction.

"My brother is a mage in the local guild of Magnolia, they are very powerful, and could have protected you from Master Hades," Lyon straightened in his seat, looking straight at Natsu, "And he holds a certain defense against this particular dragon."

Natsu's head turned towards Lyon, his nostrils flared and smoke curled from the corners of his grinning lips. He tilted his head at Lyon, dark eyes blackening in anger.

"Oho," He purred and threw his head back, laughing, "This is great! You're that ice pricks brother?"

He doubled over laughing this time and lifted his chin to Lyon, "Listen snowcone, there's nothing your brother could do to stop me if I really wanted to chew on that frilly little toothpick over there."

He jabbed a thumb in Lucy's direction and rolled his eyes, "And if it wasn't for her interference, I would have just smashed Grimoire Heart there and been on my way. Magnolia is mine and even if I let those flies in that guild stick around, that fact isn't going to change."

"It seems that 'frilly little toothpick' has you well in hand," Jura said with a calm air before Lyon could rise from his seat. He chuckled and glanced at Lucy, ignoring the way Natsu was suddenly choking on the air. Or the mean glare the dragon was giving him.

"We will be more than happy to put you up for the night Miss Lucy, perhaps Sherry will be able to provide you more comfortable clothes while you bathe and relax. And after you are cared for, we would be happy to show you around Hargeon when you are feeling up to it," Jura rose, scooting his large frame out from behind the tiny table.

Lucy gaped at him for a moment, stunned at the offer, but it quickly morphed into a grateful smile, "Thank you!" She exclaimed, hastily getting up to say goodbye to the big wizard, "I really appreciate it."

It was, without a doubt, the best stroke of luck she'd had since Leo had shown up. Though part of her kind of wished she'd just landed in Magnolia directly and avoided all this mess to begin with. Still, as harrowing as it had been she'd apparently dodged a bullet, and her luck was holding.

Jura chuckled and patted her hand, "Not at all." He rumbled with a smile, "It's important for us human wizards to look out for each other, and I couldn't in good conscience turn my back on you regardless."

He nudged her gently back to her food, "Enjoy your meal Lucy. I'll arrange that room and bath before I leave."

Lucy nodded and sat down again, feeling better about this mess than she had since it started.

She stared slightly awkwardly at the other two people still at her table, "So, what kind of magic do you do?" She asked curiously, her natural curiosity rearing its head now that her immediate fears were calming.

Lyon gave her a charming smile that had her trying not to roll her eyes, "I'm what's known as an ice make wizard." He told her, "I can create anything out of ice." He demonstrated by creating a small flock of birds similar to the ones who had attacked Natsu, but these simply flew harmlessly around the room.

"And you create the ice yourself." Lucy breathed, her eyes wide with awe, "That's amazing. Is most magic element based?"

Lyon looked supremely pleased at her reaction as he picked up his fork, "Not at all, but much of it has some basis in the elements. Make magic is simply more pronounced about it due to the nature of the magic. You'll learn that as you begin to study your own magic. Though I'm less familiar with celestial magic than other types."

Study? Her?

Somehow the thought of becoming a wizard herself had escaped Lucy, and Lyon's calm assumption that she would study and do so startled her.

Though she supposed it made sense. She had to learn some kind of magic to get home right?

Maybe Leo would be able to help her out with that when he came back.

"I-I guess," Lucy allowed, not really knowing how else she could respond to a comment like that. It wasn't like he was wrong after all, there was a distinct possibility she could learn magic. But did she really want to?

Well, it wasn't even a case of whether she wanted to learn or not. She had to. Leo had said himself that she opened a gate to this world, that meant she could open a gate back to her own world. Something which was imperative.

She already knew time was running differently. She had been travelling so long with Natsu to this new town, the sun was beginning to set. Lucy's eyes were sagging under the weight of her own exhaustion, even as she tried to wrap her brain around the idea of practicing magic.

"There's no rush," Sherry smiled, her expression growing lax, "Not when you're in love"

Lucy coughed on her drink, her eyes widening a little, even as Lyon just nodded, dispassionate to whatever his comrade was saying. He was just taking a long sip from his drink. He seemed very used to her, and the unusual comment seemed common.

"Uhm, excuse me?" Lucy gaped at her, a flush working over her cheeks. Was that her... power? Or was that just a strange personality quirk of hers?

"I mean yours," Sherry gave her a coy smile. Her eyes slanted mischievously between both her and her traveling companion. Natsu gave her a bored, disinterested look, sticking an entire chicken leg in his mouth and crunching down on the whole thing. Lucy cringed in disgust.

"My, love?" Lucy repeated, desperately needing clarification.

"It must have been extremely powerful to tame the demon you travel with," Sherry explained, tucking her hands beneath her chin. She gave Lucy a severe look, and for a second, she thought she heard the word _'hussy'_ come from her painted lips.

Lucy wasn't paying any attention to that, or the derisive snort that came from Natsu nearby.

No, she was a little hung up on the 'demon' part of what she had said.

"Wait, demon?" She demanded, "The dragon is also a demon?"

Lyon looked surprised, his attention turning to an equally stunned Sherry. He frowned, shoulders stiffening.

"He didn't tell you?"

"Must've slipped my mind!" Natsu cackled.

Lucy sighed tiredly, "Of course it did." She muttered, rubbing her temples a little.

Honestly, at this point it didn't surprise her as much as it probably should've. After all the shocks of the day she was nearly at the point where she wouldn't be surprised if Lyon told her he turned into a unicorn under a full moon or something too. This crazy world seemed insane enough for that to be entirely plausible. And she couldn't muster the energy to care much anymore.

"I think it's pretty safe to assume that I haven't been told anything beyond what I told Jura." She told them, "And I doubt Natsu's going to bother telling me much of anything either."

"Of course." Lyon replied smoothly, "What's common knowledge to us would be completely unknown to you. Apologies. We should have remembered that."

Lucy shook her head, "It's alright." She replied, "I'm not sure I would've remembered either." She stood, "If you don't mind though I'm going to see about that bath and get some sleep. It's been an exhausting day."

And she wasn't sure how much more she could cope with. It was kind of a miracle she hadn't cracked yet really. Though she had the feeling she wasn't much more than one more shock away from it.

Lyon hastily got to his feet as well, "Of course." He repeated, "The Innkeeper will show you to your room and get you anything you need. We'll come by tomorrow morning after breakfast to show you around."

Lucy gave him a grateful, if tired, smile, "Thanks." She replied and nodded to Sherry before heading off. If she was lucky Natsu wouldn't be forced to follow her, and would stay down here while she relaxed.

Maybe.

If she was lucky.

Which was kind of doubtful.

Her luck had already been strained more than enough that day. So it was grudgingly that Natsu was tugged away from his table as he trudged up to follow her to her room. However as soon as he was in there, he slipped out the window, muttering something about sleeping where it didn't stink of humans.

She watched him disappear into the night, knowing he would reappear in the morning.

So. He was a demon.

It made just as much sense as anything else did. Although she was a little surprised he was missing the devil horns, cloven feet, and tail. She had no idea what a demon was in this world and could only guess it was something bad. Well, she only had knowledge from her land as reference.

For the time being she wasn't going to think about it.

Since Natsu had thankfully removed himself from the room, leaving it free for Lucy to take a bath. A nice, long and hot one.

While under the spray of a shower, Lucy sank into the tub and leaned back. This world was so strange. How could they have running water and faucets, but still live in practically rural settings.

Still, as she curled underneath the steady stream of water, letting it work on her tense muscles and limbs, she felt almost normal. For the first time since she bought her book, she gained a little bit of her identity back.

Lucy would never complain about the mundane life she lived again. Adventures and magic, that was the stuff for heroes. Lucy hardly qualified. Still though, the reminder of her book brought a little bit of energy back to her body.

Even though she wanted to curl up in the tub and fall asleep for a hundred years, Lucy managed to pry herself free from the water and dry off. She found clothes waiting for her, much to her pleasure. It seemed Sherry had followed through with Jura's request and found a spare outfit for her and something comfortable to sleep in.

The people here were so kind, if a little strange.

She changed quickly, looking around for peeking eyes or wild Natsus. When she was done, she crawled quickly into bed and dragged the heavy comforter up to her chest. Laying down on the feathery pillow, Lucy expected for sleep to take her quickly.

But in fact, it didn't.

No instead, sleep decided it wanted to be a fickle bitch.

Lucy felt tears of frustration sting at her eyes, and she snapped on a light-switch set on a nightstand.

All she wanted to do was sleep and then wake up in her own bed. But neither of those seemed to be viable options anymore, so she sighed heavily and rolled upright.

Sleep would eventually find her, but she supposed in the meantime, she could read. Snagging her bag from at the foot of the bed, she fished around for her book and cracked it open. One would think it was a little odd for her to pick up reading a story filled with adventure when her life was currently filled with it, but the habit put her mind at ease.

The book was every bit as engaging when she re-opened it as it had been the minor eternity ago when she'd first sat down at Starbucks and cracked it open. She was quickly swept back into their world as she continued reading about Juvia's endless pursuit of Gray. Whom she was certain had feelings of his own for the water nymph, but was probably afraid to voice them. And she couldn't really blame him either. Seriously, did Juvia even know the meaning of the word subtle? It didn't seem like it.

She giggled a little, slowly relaxing as she allowed herself to be wrapped back into the story. The escapism was exactly what she needed, and despite her exhaustion she was grateful for it.

However, as she relaxed and her mind started letting go of it's confusion and bewilderment of the day, she couldn't shake the sense of something nagging at her. It had been happening off and on all day, as if she was forgetting something important, but now it was getting stronger and wouldn't leave her alone.

It wasn't until a couple of pages later, when Gray was shooting an ice bow at an enemy, that it suddenly slammed into her.

Her eyes widened, and she gasped softly as the realizations pounded her brain. Gray. Fight. Guild. Ice. She'd just been so distracted she hadn't put it all together.

Gray was Lyon's brother and an ice make wizard. He lived in Magnolia and was part of a guild in a world that was apparently built around them. Magnolia was where the guild Fairy Tail was based according to her book. And it was in the middle of Natsu's territory.

Her book was, somehow, about the guild in Magnolia.

The shock was nearly enough to make her drop the book as her mind tried to process the implications of that. That the people she'd been reading about were _real_. That these weren't stories at all, but were probably actual events. Possibly a bit glamorized, but still real events.

She'd somehow gotten her hands on a first hand account of this world and the people in it.

She could hardly believe it.

She didn't know how such a book had gotten to her world, but she wasn't going to complain about such a stroke of luck. She could learn about Earthland through it. Enough to navigate until she got home anyway.

Suddenly feeling excited, and not the least bit sleepy, she sat up a little more and began reading again avidly. The stories still swept her away, but she eagerly sought out every nugget of information about magic and this strange world she could. Maybe it was a bit weird to be learning from reading about stories of a guild, but there was a chance it could answer a lot of her questions. Things that Lyon or Jura might not think to tell her simply because to them it was a normal as breathing.

She could only hope. She needed all the help she could get with this place.

It was strange to read about these characters, people who were in fact real enough to Natsu and the members of Lamia Scale. Despite the kindness she was shown by Jura and the others, the fact that they were allies with Fairy Tail, this strange guild she had come to love, even if it was just through the written word, put her more at ease than anything else had.

Even despite never having known the characters themselves, Lucy was able to draw a little courage from the stories and Fairy Tail's adventures. It was then a plan formed in her head. A real goal, one that could give her a real sense of direction in this confusing world.

She could go to Fairy Tail.

If anyone would have an idea what to do, it would be the wise Master from Fairy Tail. Makarov, the Wizard Saint. The old man who treated his guild like they were his family.

Lucy's heart jumped and her fingers shook around the cover, her excitement palpable as she gripped the book like the very lifeline it was. For the first time since landing in this world, she had a goal. Magnolia. Fairy Tail.

And that was precisely where Natsu was heading anyway. He was eager to return to his territory, and they would have to cross through Magnolia to get there. Which meant there was a good chance they could run into Fairy Tail. Lucy couldn't hide the broad smile that flashed over her face.

She wouldn't have to let Natsu in on what she was planning either. Which was a good thing, because Lucy wasn't naïve enough to believe he was gamely traveling with her. Just earlier he tried to kill her, and Lucy was certain he had his own plots he was hiding.

A knot tightened in her lungs, her worried gaze flashing over towards the window where she had seen Natsu disappear. She began to understand Leo's hesitation when it came to healing the dragon and the worry Jura and Lamia Scale had when confronting Natsu.

Natsu was the Fire Dragon King, the demon END, and the ruler of Fiore from everything south of Crocus.

If Fairy Tail were the protagonists of her book.

Then Natsu was the _villain_.

* * *

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	7. Frankenstein

**_"Frankenstein"_**

 _Who is the true 'Monster?'_

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The next morning Lucy found herself up and full of energy despite her previous exhaustion and late night reading.

She wasn't the first out of bed, by any means. In fact, she'd slept through both the sounds of the port city stirring in the early morning, and what would've been her usual wake up time back home. It hadn't been until Natsu had managed to prod her awake by slapping a fish on her face, and how he'd gotten one of those she had no idea, that she'd actually stirred.

After reflexively smacking the dragon, and doing a fair impression of his own roar, she'd been happy enough to get up. For some reason she felt better rested after one night here than she had in three nights back home. Maybe it had something to do with this world's magic. Or maybe just the fact that today she had a real plan in place.

Granted, it wasn't a complicated one, but it didn't need to be. And unlike her lingering uncertainty about Lamia Scale, despite finding out they were good friends of Fairy Tail last night, she had faith in Fairy Tail's ability to help her.

Nor did she doubt they would turn her away. After all, all this concerned them too.

So she'd happily kicked Natsu out of her room, and gotten ready for the day. Once that was done she'd practically skipped to breakfast, and waited for Jura or Lyon to show up.

She smiled as Jura arrived while she was sipping at something they claimed was coffee, but tasted smoother than anything she'd ever had.

"Good morning." He greeted politely, a small smile adorning his grave face, "If I may say so, you're looking much refreshed and rested."

The wizard saint pointedly ignored the bottomless pit that was Natsu attempting to eat the Inn out of house and home.

"Yeah, I feel a lot better now thanks." Lucy replied.

"Good. Have you given any thought to what your plans are going to be?"

Lucy sighed as she sat down her mug, "I have." She replied, "And I hope you won't take this as an insult or anything, but as much as I'm enjoying Hargeon I'd like to ask if you could help me get enough provisions to get to Magnolia."

She blushed a bit when Jura's eyebrows lifted in surprise, "It's just, that's where my first gate came out." She explained nervously, not wanting to bring up her book if she could help it, "And I thought maybe if I went back I'd have an easier time trying to build a new one to go home or something."

Jura's expression smoothed into one of understanding, "Of course." He agreed, "That makes fine sense, and I'm sorry I didn't think of that myself. Might I recommend you seek out Fairy Tail when you arrive? They're the city's dominant magic guild, and Makarov is their leader. He's also a good friend of mine, and well versed in a variety of magics. He may be able to help."

Lucy felt a palpable surge of relief at his words, and she nodded with genuine gratitude, "I definitely will!" She exclaimed.

Jura nodded and rose, "Then I will see to some provisions and transportation for you, and a letter that may help explain things to Makarov." He smiled kindly at her, "Don't worry Lucy. I'm certain my friend will be able to help you get home."

To say she was relieved Jura had put the idea of Fairy Tail and Makarov out in the open was an understatement. Already she could see Natsu's shoulders stiffening at the mention of the magical guild. Had she not spoken to Jura about it, Lucy was certain he would have dragged his heels about it.

Now he could complain all he wanted, but Lucy was determined to go. She straightened up and rose from her seat, eager to see the sights of Hargeon before they got going. If she was going to be trapped in a magical world where everything was upside down and on its head...

Well she was at least going to enjoy it.

"Come on Natsu" She called to her sullen companion, heading to the door to force the dragon up onto his feet. His dark eyes flashed towards her, sulky and filled with petulance. He really was like a real life six year old.

"Alright, keep yer hair on," Natsu grumbled, shoving his fists into his pants, the raggedy fabric hanging low on trim hips. Lucy's eyes followed as Natsu brushed past her, eyes fixated on observing him clearly.

He was taller than her, and his features were sharp, angular and focused. It was strange, but the grumpy pout on his face didn't look as if it belonged there. Perhaps it was the optimism from her rest, but she thought it was better suited to smiling.

Strange though were his clothes. For a dragon who supposedly coveted wealth and treasure, greedy for all manner of objects... he dressed in rags.

It was almost as if he had not worn anything new in a great many years. He needed a change of clothes just as much as Lucy had, but at least she had been provided with a new set thanks to Sherry's generosity.

Curious, she kept her gaze lingering over the dragon as they were escorted to the piers. There Lucy was able to look at the bustling port town, the scent of fish and salt heavy in the air. She was absolutely thrilled to see the sights.

Now that she wasn't hungry, thirsty, and exhausted, enjoying the view was fully possible.

The townsfolk were all extremely friendly, if a bit wary whenever Natsu drew near. She was surprised by his lack of reaction to the humans shooting him looks of either fear or hatred, but grateful for it all the same. After remembering the stories she had read about Natsu razing the towns and forests around Hargeon though, she couldn't blame them for their reactions, and didn't want to deal with the fallout if he lost his temper.

And Natsu, he seemed completely unaffected by whatever he had done to these people. Instead he was staring boredly out at the horizon.

As if sensing her eyes on him, he glanced over his shoulder at her and gave her a searching look, "What're you lookin' at ya weirdo?"

Lucy rolled her eyes, "Like you can talk about weird." She retorted, but there was no edge of anger to her tone, "And I'm trying to figure you out."

She leaned against the railing they were next to, "I just don't understand what you have against everyone. I mean, why are you so mad at people?" She gestured vaguely to the town at large, "These people are nice. Maybe they're not perfect, but they're good people. How could they have possibly pissed you off so badly?"

Natsu blinked at her in surprise, not having expected that at all.

She wanted to know why he was so angry? She thought that was his normal state of being?

Okay he could see why she would think that. She hadn't exactly been given much to work with so far. And he was pretty cranky about quite a bit at the moment. But still, the naively innocent questions were hilarious, and in moments he was choking and snorting in mirth before roars of laughter burst from him.

"You think I do this 'cause I'm mad?" He cackled, "Aw man! You got it all wrong!" He grinned toothily at her, "I do it 'cause I enjoy it." He purred, almost seductively, "It's fun."

Alright, so that wasn't the whole truth, but she didn't need to know that.

Lucy just sighed and shook her head, trying not to blush at the tone of his voice. It was completely unfair that the villain in this story was not only good looking, but had a voice that would melt any woman's heart.

It was even more unfair that she couldn't help noticing it now.

"You ever stop to consider maybe you'd have more fun if you tried protecting people instead of making their lives miserable?" She drawled wryly.

She was rewarded for her question by a Natsu making a face at her, his lips pulling up into a sarcastic grin. He crossed his arms, a heavy sigh escaping from his lungs.

"Why the hell would I do somethin' like that?" He asked her, head tilting to the side, completely oblivious to Lucy's inner thoughts. For which she was grateful for, because she had a feeling the dragon would try to take control of any advantage he might perceive.

"Seems like it's too much work to invest in people who don't got nothin' to give me for my hard work," He dug a finger in his ear, scratching.

"'Sides, humans got their silly guilds to help 'em out against monsters like me," Natsu shrugged dispassionately, "You're not from around these parts, so I guess I can excuse you for not knowing how it's done. But my kind don't mingle well with yours."

Lucy met his dark eyes. Eyes that seemed so sure of this indisputable fact, Lucy couldn't help but try to look for reasons beyond what he had given her.

Finding none she frowned, pulling a face as her brows dragged down into a sharp V. A chilly spread of air spread from the ocean, pushing past Natsu. The heat from his body naturally warmed the cool air and brushed across her cheeks. It was almost as if it was a gentle touch from the sun itself. How could something so nice come from someone so cruel?

"Why not?" She asked simply.

Her question seemed to fill the empty air between them. It was an innocent enough question, but he looked surprised. Slowly, Natsu blinked, considering her question.

And Lucy knew, just by the look on his face, that he did not have an answer for her. Not that she expected he would.

She wasn't a stranger to lines drawn in the sand. Between the wealthy and poverty stricken, or even between races. In her world she had lived through such boundaries and fought against them. Perhaps it wasn't the same thing here, Lucy was fresh and had no idea what kind of racial tensions flowed between her species and his...

But they were travelling together, and Lucy wanted to know his reasons.

Natsu looked mystified and his mouth opened to answer her, sharp fangs gleaming like sharp pearls before they snapped shut in consideration.

"They just don't alright," Natsu pouted, his eyebrows slanting into a grumpy point, "Monsters attack humans, humans fight off monsters. It's fun, entertaining and just the way things are."

He gave her a considering look out of the corner of his eye and Lucy was unable to stop herself from rolling hers up to the sky.

"It's just a thought," Lucy pointed out, "It seems kinda lonely just torching villages and bullying people."

Natsu blinked in surprise, a little thrown by the comment. A bully? He'd never thought of himself as such. Though he guessed he could see why she would call him that. She didn't really seem to understand the idea of how monsters worked. Which made him wonder just what sort of screwed up rules they had in her world.

Because he could tell she was sincere. There was no way she could hide that from him. She really didn't understand. Were monsters nice in her world or something?

He scoffed a little to himself. There was no way. Monsters were monsters, and they'd terrorized and fought humans for millennia. Since before he was even born. It was just how things were.

He was a monster so he did what monsters do. And he enjoyed it. He liked setting things on fire, and it was fun to beat people up and take their stuff. His hoard was vast and he lived comfortably. Just as a king should.

"Shows what you know." He snorted derisively, and crossed his arms, "There's nothing lonely about having fun, and those weak idiots get what they deserve."

For some reason she didn't look very convinced though. He couldn't imagine why, but whatever. He already knew she was weird, so it wasn't any skin off his nose.

Lucy just sighed, more convinced than ever that she'd inadvertently hit the nail on the head.

She'd seen the discomfort and unease flicker through his eyes, even as dark and mysterious as they were, and could tell that despite his words she'd prodded at something he didn't like.

It seemed her demon dragon had more depth than he was willing to admit even to himself. Perhaps _especially_ to himself.

Somehow that made him seem more human.

"If you say so," Lucy allowed, letting it go for the time being. Natsu seemed the type that would lash out if shoved into a corner and she didn't care to drive him into one. Not when he was going to be dragged behind her all the way to Magnolia.

She looked out at the water and leaned against the railing on the pier.

The water was clear and unpolluted here, so translucent she could see the glittering of fishes scales darting just under the water. This was a healthy town, thriving even in its warring time. Lamia Scale must have done a good job keeping its town safe.

She hoped that also meant perhaps Natsu had a softer spot in him than he was willing to admit. Because there was no denying that if Natsu wanted to smash this town, he could do it. Well, if he hadn't been bound that was.

"How large is your territory?" She asked the dragon, curious despite herself. She wanted to know how far it spread out and if he shared territory with any other dragons like himself.

Because the way Natsu acted, it seemed almost as if Lamia Scale also landed within the boundaries of his land.

Natsu heaved a heavy sigh, dropping his forehead against the railing and pouting at her.

Seriously, more questions? Did this woman ever stop? Still, he was a little surprised. No one had shown this much interest in him in... centuries.

"Everything south of Crocus to the sea line belongs to me. The north belongs to a metal dragon who stinks like rust and oil," Natsu made a face. Then there were the badlands between the boundaries, but… he hadn't been there in years. He scowled and gave Lucy a critical look, "Why's it matter, we're not going any further than Magnolia anyway."

Lucy looked over at the bag of supplies entrusted to her by a young girl named Chelia. Earlier when they had been investigating vendors lined up at the docks, she had run up with the sack of goods and a cheerful smile. She had been just as friendly as anyone else from Lamia Scale and Lucy found she very much liked her. She was the younger cousin of Sherry, capable of a rare form of healing magic. Something Lucy was sincerely grateful for when she gasped and began to poke at Lucy's various scrapes and bruises from the previous day.

By the time she was done, all the remaining aches were gone. She left both of them with a wave, and extracted a promise from Lucy to tell their friends at Fairy Tail that Lamia Scale gave their regards. Within it were various strange lacrimas she wasn't completely sure how to use, along with a map, money, spare sets of clothes and toiletries. Most importantly was the letter tucked carefully in the side pocket, addressed to Master Makarov.

Most notably, there wasn't anything for Natsu within the bag, although she supposed that was because of his rocky relationship with the local guild. Jura, for a second looked over at Natsu, almost as if he were going to ask the dragon if he needed provisions.

The dark look he received had been answer enough.

Lucy rolled her shoulders and smiled at him.

"I was just curious about you, we're going to be spending a bit of time together, so we might as well get to know one another a little," She answered with enough honesty to make his head swivel towards her. Lucy picked through the bag to withdraw a bag of money and a schedule of times the carriages would be leaving.

"This land is so strange, you have carriages, magic mobiles, and trains," Lucy looked at the pamphlet. It was hard for her to understand how all of these things made sense in a world so quaint and technologically behind.

"If we hurry, we can catch the train to Magnolia," She turned towards Natsu with a pleased smile, "That should speed up our trip a bit."

Natsu managed, somehow, to keep from hurling at just the thought of being on any form of transportation. It was about the last thing he wanted, and he could feel his stomach churning uneasily already. However, he wasn't about to let Lucy know that if he could help it. So he scowled and crossed his arms sulkily.

"What do we need a train for?" He scoffed, "It's not that far to walk."

"For you maybe." Lucy replied with a slight roll of her eyes, remembering how he hadn't even broken a sweat during their hike to Hargeon, "But even going by road I wouldn't be up to hiking that distance in any kind of reasonable time. It's much better to just take the train and not worry about it."

She curled her hand around his wrist, tugging him along, "C'mon! It'll be fine."

Natsu seriously doubted that. Transportation hadn't agreed with him since he was a hatchling, and he had no reason to believe it would be any different now. Unfortunately, Lucy was determined, and he was having trouble thinking of a reason to argue without giving things away he didn't want to.

Or using other kinds of transportation.

Which also meant he somehow had to get dragged into the movable sardine can. Natsu internally cringed, resisting the powerful urge to drive his heels in the ground and make Lucy drag him onto the train. Only the fact she could simply walk away and he would be forced to follow her anyway kept him from doing something like that.

This was going to suck.

* * *

Alright guys so you got an early update because Kytrin is coming back to Atlanta over the weekend! I get to see her again! Hohohoho, be jealous. We had a few people talk about how odd it was that it took Lucy so long to put it together she was living information from the book. Lets give the poor girl a break, she's been running for her life since she got in this crazy place. (But, hey. She got a pet dragon so that's gotta count for something right?)

 ** _ANYWAY! THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! -_** _Owlcity2013 - Princessatj - MadamUranus - iamthewerepire - Weepingwillowfairy - fanficlove2014 - TheRealIgneel - Twishadowhunter - LoneStorm - Soul-less-mermai - HazelDragonNora - Snavej - brooke0315 - Guest - Avengerika - SakuraPetal91 - bakafangirl - Marie Allen - eternalstarrlight - oreobark - Ikityan - Saya Moonshadow - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - wisdom-of-me - HalfBlackWolfDemon_

Your encouragement helps us continue writing! We really appreciate everything you guys do for us!


	8. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

_Thanks again to everyone who is reading this with us! Sorry for the delayed update! Dragoncon was a thing, and Kytrin and I were both at it so there wasn't going to be any updates until both of us regained a pulse. It was lots of fun, and I even saw a Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Erza cosplayer!_

* * *

 _ **"The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly"**_

 _Here comes Clint Eastwood_

* * *

Natsu had never been on a train before. Shoulders bunching with tension, he didn't bother to break the hold Lucy had on his wrist. She walked with brisk steps to the station, where Lyon and Jura were waiting to say goodbye.

The train hissed and steamed, almost like a great metal dragon. Except this one was going to be far worse than any encounter with a real one. He reflexively tugged backwards, his stomach rolling at the sight of the metal contraption.

Lucy simply released him, not having noticed his cringing.

"Thanks for your hospitality Jura," Lucy gave him a grateful look. The wizard saint merely nodded gamely, his face calm and smile kind on her. Natsu wanted to shove him onto the tracks for putting the idea of traveling through the town in Lucy's head.

What a pain in the ass.

"Think nothing of it," Jura slid his hands into his sleeves, crossing his arms over his chest, "Know you are always welcome in Lamia Scale if you ever find yourself back in Hargeon."

"And if you see Gray in Magnolia, tell him to stop by to brush up. His magic needs work," Lyon added, a superior smirk on his face.

Natsu snorted, mouth opening to throw a barb at the ice make wizard, but jumped back instead when the train gave a hissing growl next to him.

Jura stared for a second and then returned his gaze to Lucy, "Take care on your travels Lucy. There have been quite a number of bandits on the road as of late, but the train should provide you safer passage than if you were traveling by carriage or foot."

Lucy nodded, "We'll be careful." She promised, making a mental note to keep an eye out for suspicious people. Well, as much as possible. The people in this world were strange by her standards regardless, and she wasn't sure she would be able to spot something out of place.

Still, it couldn't hurt to keep her eyes open just in case.

She smiled at both wizards and waved as she boarded the train, dragging an increasingly green Natsu with her despite his efforts to avoid boarding by clawing at the platform floor and then clinging to the door.

"I really hate you." He groaned, already feeling his stomach churning more just from the at rest vibration.

Lucy blinked at him in confusion, "Natsu, what are you doing?" She asked, taken aback by the sight of him in kind of a Natsu shaped puddle of misery on the floor, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He choked as he clawed his way to the nearest empty seats and collapsed in one, taking up the whole seat, "Just leave me alone."

At least the seat was comfy. He half curled his arms around it possessively, and growled a little when Lucy initially moved to sit on it. _His seat_. If he was going to be miserable then he was at least going to have his own space. Lucy could just sit somewhere else. And so could anyone else for that matter.

Lucy stared at the dragon in mingled amusement and confusion. Obviously there was something wrong, though she couldn't imagine what since nothing was happening, but if he didn't want to tell her she wasn't going to press.

As it was watching him lay claim to an entire seat bench and growl feebly at anyone passing too close was kind of funny to watch.

She shook her head a little and opened the window to at least get some fresh air blowing in. Maybe it would help whatever was eating at Natsu so badly.

Regardless of his problem, he was being quiet and well behaved, so that was all that really mattered to her. She didn't even want to think about how Natsu would behave within close quarters for the trip back to Magnolia. She was lucky he seemed to have rolled over onto his side to take a nap.

Although the strange growling and hacking noises he was making told her he wasn't quite asleep.

"Natsu are you really going to take up that whole bench? You know some people are going to want to sit down too," She chided lightly. Natsu just reached around for Lucy's pack and set it on top of his head to prevent himself from hearing her.

It was the only sign he even acknowledged what she said, which just proved he was rude as usual.

The jerk wasn't even looking at her!

Rolling her eyes, she huffed and snagged her book from within the bag once the departing whistle of the train rang out. Her moving the sack elicited a territorial growl from Natsu, but Lucy ignored it.

Especially since the growl seemed to choke off at the root seconds later into a pathetic sounding whine. Lucy gave him a curious look as she sat back down to get comfortable with her book. Natsu actually seemed a little sick at the moment, so she didn't see the harm in reading while he was out of it.

Could dragons get sick, much less demons?

Lucy didn't know, but the thought seemed too ridiculous to be possible. No, it was too insane. Natsu was just being grumpy and taking a nap as usual. Which was why she didn't pay him any mind when the train began to move and Natsu all but became one with the bench he was sprawled over.

His back was still turned towards her, his breathing shallow and head still buried underneath their pack of supplies. An uneventful hour passed, where the train rattled on through cleared out woods and tracks, Lucy's attention drawing from the book every now and then to watch the moving countryside flash past.

The only movement from Natsu was when he moved the pack from the top of his head into his arms to drop his head on it like a pillow. Lucy pulled her attention up from a chapter about Fairy Tail's run in with their dragon-enemy. He had apparently been stealing lacrima from merchants coming into the town for fun.

Seeing Natsu on his side, with his head on her bag and his knees drawn up to his chest, Lucy had a little trouble associating the images in her mind. And then had even further trouble recalling how Natsu had so ruthlessly been about to kill both her and the guild members in Hargeon.

But some of the stories surrounding Natsu and Fairy Tail were strange.

Lucy had seen what Natsu did to Master Hades' ship. He had ruthlessly squashed the fleeing guild members and ripped apart the hull of their ship with his teeth alone.

But the crimes he committed against Fairy Tail ranged from serious, all the way to petty. So much in fact, it seemed more like a prank than anything else compared to his usual ferocity.

Still, perhaps the book was flawed after all. Lucy didn't know how Natsu would react to Fairy Tail in person. And that was something she would have to see with her own eyes.

Lucy was pulled out of her musing when a strange shudder ran through the train and yelped as the brakes suddenly squealed sending her flying directly onto Natsu, "What the...?" She groaned as she picked herself up and looked around in confusion.

All around her other people were picking themselves up as well, groaning softly from crashing into things, and blinking with the same confusion she felt, but there was nothing she could see that explained what had happened.

Of course, that didn't mean anything either. They were on a train. It could've had something to do with one of the other cars, and the more she got her bearings the more likely that seemed to be.

Whatever it was though, it had to be bad. They were in the middle of nowhere. Which, as clichéd as it sounded, probably meant the train was being robbed.

How ironic that her guilty pleasure of spaghetti westerns would actually prove useful.

"Natsu, I think the train's being robbed." She murmured to the dragon, who actually did look distinctly green up close. Maybe he really was sick?

"Good." The dragon growled, his face still buried in their pack, "It stopped this stupid train." That was always going to win points in his book. Always.

"Natsu!" Lucy scolded, "This is serious!"

Natsu cracked an eye open, giving her an irritated look, "Why? They'll grab whatever they want to add to their hoard and leave."

"You don't know that!" Lucy hissed, annoyed as much by his attitude as his rudeness, "They could be planning to blow up the train, or take everyone hostage or something!"

"So what?" He yawned as he sat back up, feeling considerably better the longer he sat there without that stupid rocking driving him insane, "I'll just roast 'em if they get too close."

Why should he care otherwise? Lucy would be fine. He would exert himself enough to keep her from dying until she unbound him. He wasn't certain what clauses there were if she died while they were connected, so it would probably be better to err on the side of caution for now.

And he would certainly be fine. So what was the big deal?

He swung his legs up, dragging his fingers through his hair to shake off the remaining twists of nausea coiling in his stomach. He really was not a huge fan of trains, but even less of a fan of Lucy waving a hand in his face.

"What're you gonna do, roast them on a metal train and cook everyone on it with them?" Lucy huffed, dropping her hands on her hips. Granted, she wasn't the most courageous of people. She usually exercised caution on the better side of valor, especially since she didn't exactly know how to defend herself in this world.

Her great 'magical' ability consisted of yelling at a dragon and running away into a random location.

Not even one of her own choosing.

"Yeah, so?" Natsu's scowled, giving her a dry look.

He stopped as the sound of heavy footfalls caught his attention and he snagged Lucy's wrist to cut her off, dragging her behind him. He ignored her indignant splutters and poked his head out into the aisle.

Plenty of confused and wary humans were muttering amongst themselves, frightened and confused. All except the humans standing in the aisle and making their way through the carriage.

His nose twitched, picking up a curious scent of dark, magical energy coming from them. Wizards then, belonging to a dark guild. Annoyance flared in him. Bandits were one thing, dark guild members were another. They just irritated him on principle, but it also made protecting Lucy a little more difficult as a guild of wizards tended to complicate matters.

He watched as they approached, lead by a heavily tattooed man, shouldering a heavy scythe across his back. Every now and then when they seemed to detect a magical presence, they would drag someone out of their seat to loot them of their valuables.

Were they searching for something?

Natsu's lips twisted in amusement. They were heading right towards them. Lucy could say whatever she wanted. This was going to be fun.

For her part, Lucy wasn't sure _what_ she was feeling at the moment. It was kind of like when she'd met that guy Hades and his guild only more pronounced. These guys just seemed to ooze slime, and from what she could see peeking around Natsu she absolutely didn't want to get near them. They took creepy to whole new levels. Especially the guy with the scythe. Could you get more grim reaper than that?

Unfortunately, they were getting steadily closer, despite their stops, and she couldn't help gulping nervously when they stopped at her and Natsu.

"Well...what have we here?" The leader drawled lazily, looking at them both with interest, "You're certainly giving off a lot of magic."

Wait...that was a thing? It was possible to actually _sense_ that?

Maybe she shouldn't have been surprised by it, but she was. After all, this world ran on magic. Why shouldn't it be something detectable? Except she hadn't been able to tell who was magical and who wasn't. And Jura had given every indication of surprise when she'd explained her own magic. Such as it was.

It was kind of confusing.

"It looks like they're both wizards." A wizard with black hair and the creepiest smile she'd ever seen laughed darkly as he slithered up next to Lucy and draped an arm around her shoulders, ignoring her startled yelp of indignation, "Maybe we should take them with us. Especially this one." He leered at Lucy in a way that had her shuddering and smacking him.

An action that had his buddies all roaring in laughter.

"I dunno." The leader drawled in amusement, "She looks like she might be too much for you to handle Kageyama." He smirked.

"Get away from me you creep!" Lucy wrestled her way free and backed up. She wished she had thought to ask Jura for some kind of weapon in case she had to protect herself, because relying on Natsu in situations like this was not going to work for her.

Natsu had his arms crossed, looking almost bored by everything going around. Which was impossible, since they were in the middle of getting robbed.

In fact he looked like he was getting ready to take a nap again.

That was until the leader's eyes dragged towards him, specifically their sack of supplies.

"Take their supplies, and bring the girl with," His chilly stare landed on Lucy, drawing a shiver up her spine, "I sense something unusual about her."

Natsu's gaze flashed to the men advancing into their compartment, an eyebrow ticking. Lucy had just enough knowledge of Natsu to know whatever the leader said, it bothered the dragon in some way.

This time she took two large steps back.

"You better not," She tried to warn them.

But it was too late. A wicked smile was spreading over Natsu's face, one Lucy was beginning to understand meant nothing good. The guild member put one hand on their bag, and the next thing any of them saw was Natsu's fist smashing into his nose.

"I don't like anyone touching _my stuff,_ " Natsu let out a snarling warning, the edge to his voice giving Lucy enough time to duck and shield her hands over her head. There was no way she was getting mixed up between a dragon and a wizard. Especially with that maniacal grin on Natsu's face.

There was nothing more terrifying in the world.

The leader of the guild had enough sense to twist to the right into a spare compartment just as a jet of fire roared out from Natsu. It blasted a hole straight through one side of the train and smashed out the other, mowing through a large chunk of the dark guild.

And the train.

"Natsu! What the hell were you thinking! There could have been people over there!" Lucy grabbed one of the train seat cushions and hurtled it at the back of his cackling head.

"Jeez, what's your problem now?" He grumbled, glancing over his shoulder at her, "I didn't hit anyone!"

"That's not the point!" Lucy exclaimed as she stood back up, "There could have been! You need to be more careful!"

"You're so noisy." Natsu grumbled, rubbing his head despite the fact the cushion hadn't hurt at all, "I got the job done, and none of your precious people were hurt, so why're you complaining?"

Lucy opened her mouth to retort only for her eyes to widen in horror as she spotted that enormous scythe coming right for them. Without thinking she grabbed Natsu by the scarf and hit the deck, dragging him with her just as the weapon passed overhead at what would've been shoulder height on Natsu.

She instinctively curled closer to the dragon as their entire side of the car was blown out by a powerful gust of wind.

These people were all completely insane! It was the only explanation.

"Kageyama!" The leader barked as he prowled towards them, "Go ahead and find that treasure! I'll deal with these two pesky flies myself."

"I'm no fly!" Natsu snarled, springing at the man as the others ran off.

"Wait Natsu!" Lucy tried, but it was far too late as the dragon unleashed another cone of flame only for his opponent to literally call wind up out of nowhere and blast the roof off as well.

Maybe she was better off getting out of the way like everyone else seemed to be doing. It would probably be better for her health if these two were really going to duke it out.

She edged around the combatants towards the door and slipped into the next compartment. It couldn't be any worse in here than it was out there right?

It was a rather complicated situation to be sure. And Lucy was hedging around broken pieces of machinery, trying not to cut herself on the metal shards. They were completely trashing the train, and it seemed they would be forced to hike it on foot even if they made it out unscathed.

She wasn't entirely confident that would be a possibility either. Not with the way heavy gusts of wind and flame were beginning to shake the train.

Chest heaving with tight fear and worry, Lucy managed to make her way over to the storage carriage. She sagged in relief and dropped her back to the door. Safe at last.

At least for now.

She could hear Natsu roaring something extremely rude at the leader, her cheeks burning at the sheer audacity of his crude insults.

What was she expecting from him though? He slapped her in the face this morning with a fish to wake her up.

Another ground rattling tremor had the car rocking, and Lucy yelped a little and curled into a ball as some of the boxes and crates shook loose and fell, "Do those guys have any other setting besides overkill?" She muttered as another rattle hit.

She sighed a little as she uncurled a little, and blinked in shock at the sight of the contents of the now cracked open crates before her.

Gold.

Gold coins. Gold artifacts. Gold everywhere.

Was she looking at someone's secret treasure hoard or something?

It sure looked that way at first, but then she caught sight of a piece of pottery in one spot, and a wall etching fragment in another, and she slowly realized that these were archaeological artifacts of some kind being transported.

Could this have been what the creepy tattoo dude was after?

None of it seemed especially magical to her, but then what did she know about it?

She had a sudden flash to her fairy tales about cursed dragon hoards, and other cursed magical items and pressed a little more closely against the door. Better to stay far away. She did not need to be turned into a newt or something on top of everything else.

Unfortunately, the rest of the world had other ideas as the door was suddenly wrenched open behind her and she tumbled back to find herself staring up at the creepy jerk from before.

Her eyes widened in horror as she scrambled back, suddenly acutely aware of the fact Natsu wasn't there, and having terrifying flashbacks to when she'd been cornered at the church.

"Well, well, look what we found here." Kageyama drawled as Lucy scrambled back, heedless of potentially cursed treasure, "Looks like we found both our treasure and Erigor's prize."

"Leave me alone!" Lucy shouted, though it came out sounding a lot more terrified than she liked. This was not good. Where was a weapon when she needed one?

Her hand bumped against something warm as she continued to retreat through the pile of treasures. It was warm and inviting, and it drew her attention enough to look down at it.

A gold key?

That was the only word she could think of to describe it despite the fact it looked nothing like any kind of key she'd ever seen. It had ornate tooling on it, and the base looked kind of like an ancient water jug with the symbol for Aquarius on it.

It was also glowing and pulsing, as if prompting her to pick it up.

Had her magic somehow activated the key?

She didn't know, and certainly didn't understand, but she was desperate enough to try anything at this point and curled her hand around it.

Immediately a surge of power coursed through her, along with a sense of irritated triumph. As if something was both glad that she'd picked up the key, and annoyed it had taken her so long.

She didn't have time to contemplate that though as something else pushed her to scramble to her feet. Water. She needed water. She didn't know why that was, she just knew she needed it.

And there was none around. Of course.

At least, there wasn't until she heard a crack of thunder and rain started to pour down outside.

Her eyes widened and she sprinted for the door at the back. Those guys could have whatever they wanted from the pile. _She_ was going to where there was water.

"You're not going anywhere!" Kageyama shouted at her retreating back. Lucy didn't stop to look back at him or whatever sorcery he was conjuring.

There was a sudden, eerie shift in the air. Almost like a pressure she hadn't felt before.

Was this magic?

She yelped in surprise when a sudden fist emerged from her shadow, catching her from the side and tilting her worlds sideways. The impact on the ground was hard, and her head spun, jaw throbbing in pain from where she had been struck.

Worn carpet, unraveling at the edges twisted through her fingers, keeping her cemented to what was going on. An ache ran through her head, telling her an ugly bruise would no doubt form just under her jaw where she had been struck.

Her eyes fell to the outside, where rain lashed against the train's windows, falling in heavy streams. It was so close, but so far away.

She couldn't possibly hope to reach it at this rate.

The footsteps of Kageyama's approach sent shudders of ice cold terror running through her, and she managed to whip around just in time for his foot to cruelly catch her shoulder and shove her down onto the floor.

"So, you wanna run do ya? It's not real nice to make me chase you," He mocked, a sneer drawing over his face. His booted heel ground into the joint of her shoulder and Lucy thrashed outwards with her legs, trying to break free.

"Get away!" She cried out, driving her leg upwards to nail him between the legs. Satisfaction sank into her when Kageyama's eyes bugged out of his head and his knees collapsed inwards, dropping backwards like a stone.

"Serve you right!" Lucy stuck her tongue out at him and scrambled back to her feet to safety.

But she quickly realized, Kageyama was down, but his magic wasn't. Something cold and hard wrapped around her ankle after she hadn't taken more than five steps towards the door. Her feet were ripped out from under her, dragging her weight down to the floor once again.

Shadows, thick and heavy were wrapped around her ankles, rising over her calves and spreading across her knees.

A scream of terror bubbled in her throat, dying out as she stared at the shadows creeping up along her body and dragging her back towards the felled Kageyama.

* * *

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	9. Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

**9**

 **Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea**

"The human mind delights in grand conceptions of supernatural beings."  
―Jules Verne, _Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea_

* * *

Kageyama was just beginning to pick himself up, his cheeks still a little purple from Lucy's strike. But the confidence in his mean eyes told her that his restricting magic on her meant she would not get another chance.

"This time girlie," He hissed, a hand raising to call upon rising shadows, "This time you are going to be cut into pretty little pieces. Erigor won't mind."

"Wait!" Lucy gasped out, fear choking around her throat.

The train gave another sudden rock, pitching violently to the right and completely derailing. The carriage Lucy was in dropped onto its side, hurtling both her and Kageyama to the sides. The mage was left screaming as he fell off, unbalanced by being on two feet.

But Lucy, who had been laying on the floor, was able to slide and catch herself on seats with her legs. Taking his distraction, and the weakening spell as a sign, she made her wild escape to the door.

For once she was grateful for Natsu's lack of ability to dial his magic down and climbed out the door which had burst open from the crash.

She was instantly soaked the moment she stepped outside, but Lucy didn't care about that one bit. She was where the water was, and immediately she got another, almost vicious, sense of triumph. Though it was still tinged with impatience. She ignored the impatience as she scrambled away from the train.

Now that she was surrounded by water she began looking around frantically. She needed something more than rain. A pond, or puddle, or something. Thankfully, with all the rain, and all the fighting between Natsu and Erigor, there were a number of such puddles quickly forming.

She sprinted towards the nearest one, her heart nearly stopping when she heard Kageyama behind her and skidded to a halt just as the disgusting man came into view.

She stared at him, nearly frozen in fear and desperate for someone to come help her out, when the key in her hand glowed again and this time she was seized by the power from the object.

She held it out, despite not knowing why, and slashed it through the air, "Open! Gate of the water bearer!" She called in a confident voice she could hardly recognize as her own, and plunged it into the rapidly filling crater of water, "Aquarius!"

Where the words came from she had no idea, but suddenly before her eyes a blue mermaid holding an urn appeared.

"Tch." Aquarius huffed, "It's about time."

"What?" Lucy gawked in confusion, "I...what?"

But the blue mermaid, who she guessed must be Aquarius, wasn't listening as she fastened her gaze on Kageyama, "You." She growled fiercely enough that he actually stopped in his tracks.

Lucy didn't really blame him. Aquarius was scary.

"It's because of you this little brat got ahold of my key, and interrupted my date!" She snarled and began waving her urn, "Just die!"

Lucy screamed in shock as a veritable flood of water came from the urn, and slammed into Kageyama, his buddies behind him, the train, and everything else. Like a tsunami.

The only reason she was spared was because she just happened to be slightly uphill to everyone else.

"As for you!" Aquarius snarled, turning her glare on a suddenly nervous Lucy, "Don't you ever summon me without a proper contract again!" She grabbed her by the shirt, "And I'll drown you if you even consider doing it in a puddle again! Is that clear!"

"Yes ma'am!" Lucy squeaked, not wanting to piss of anyone who could do that to a train. Even if it was already half destroyed.

Aquarius glared at her for a moment longer, as if assessing whether or not she was telling the truth, and released her, "Good. Next time I show up here it had better be for a contract, and you'd better not interrupt another date. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am!" Lucy yelped again, and sighed a little in relief when the terrifying spirit passed back through her gate.

Clearly not all spirits were like Leo.

She wasn't able to give it much more thought when a very soggy Natsu stumbled out of the train. He coughed up a ball of smoke, bracing himself onto the edge of the train.

He kicked out a barefoot, water dripping from his pants legs as he jumped down into the muddy floor. He walked straight for Lucy, squelching every time he moved.

She gulped, somehow having a feeling where this conversation was about to go thanks to the absolutely murderous look on his face. Although considering his hair was plastered down on his head, natural spikes flat to his skull, the intimidating picture was a little sullied. He looked more like a drowned cat than a dragon.

"So, did you fight the leader - I think Erigor was his name?" Lucy asked, deciding to play dumb instead. Better to live up to her reputation as a blond for once, maybe he would go easy on her. Unlikely, but it was worth a shot.

"Oh yeah I did," Natsu complained. His dark eyes locked on her, even as he pushed his soaked bangs from his face, "So imagine my shock when after I get through putting the fear of _myself_ into that tattooed freak, I suddenly get crushed by a tidal wave."

"Yeah, I noticed it." Lucy replied, trying not to laugh nervously, "Looks like a lot of people got clobbered by it." She gestured vaguely towards the even more wrecked train, and cringed a bit inwardly at Aquarius' destruction. She appreciated the save, but was it necessary to almost take out everyone else too?

Natsu's eyes narrowed a little more as he stepped into her space, "You wouldn't have happened to 'see' how it happened would ya?" He purred darkly.

He'd been in enough fights it wasn't hard for him to read the battlefield, and it was clear enough to him that that cursed wave of water that had tried to drown him had originated from Lucy's point.

His suspicion was confirmed when Lucy shifted nervously, a look of guilt in her eyes.

"Uhm, well..." Lucy tried, but couldn't think of a way to avoid the explanation without lying. And that was something she would not do.

She whined a little in resignation for the blowup that was sure to happen now, "Aquarius did it." She admitted, "I found her key while I was running from those creeps, and when I opened her gate she saved me by flooding the place."

She grinned nervously and held up her hands peaceably, "I know, I know. She got everyone else too, but she really did save my butt."

At least now she would have a weapon. If she could ever figure out how that whole contract thing was supposed to work. Hopefully Leo would be back soon to help her out with that.

But much to her surprise, the blow up never came. Instead he was leaning forward, the mention of Aquarius making him go very still. He tapped a finger against his jaw, fangs just visible under the curve of his lips.

His eyes fell down to the key, still grasped in her hand, bending down at the waist to inspect it closely.

"Aquarius, huh?" A certain, secretive gleam entered his dark gaze, but he didn't seem to have any comment on it, "And you were able to use her gate?"

A slow smirk dragged from cheek to cheek and he straightened, "Now isn't this a fun new discovery. Looks like you can open the lost gates as well as your own."

Lost gates?

"What're you talking about?" Lucy asked, frustrated once again by her lack of knowledge of this world. She was eager to get back to her book in the hopes it would shed a little more light on the situation again. Perhaps it would provide a clue.

Natsu just shrugged, as usual deciding to be his typically unhelpful self. He yawned, tucking his nose down into his dirty scarf and rolling his eyes.

"Who knows?" He laughed mischievously. Spinning on a heel, he marched back the way he came.

"Wait, Natsu!" Lucy protested. Her frustration over the lack of information was evident, but of course Natsu didn't seem to care. Instead he waved at her over a shoulder, not even turning around.

"Come on!" He shouted back to her, "Let's get the stuff and head out. This hunk of junk isn't going anywhere!"

And then he disappeared back inside the train, hopping in with nimble movements. Lucy instead had to trudge through ankle deep mud, the soft, squelching dragging at her feet and slowing her down. She had no idea how Natsu had moved so fast through the mud.

She clambered through the dirt, climbing back into the sideways train in a graceless heap. The only reason she was making sure to even follow Natsu, was to retrieve her book. The other things could be replaced, and Natsu would be sure to get them.

But her book was irreplaceable. She had to be certain it was safe from Aquarius' tides.

She also had to make sure Natsu didn't rob any of the passengers when she wasn't looking. Admittedly, that was a very real possibility and he already had a head start.

Thankfully, it appeared that most everyone had gotten away from the area while Natsu was fighting, so for the moment they were the only ones there. Though he did look like he was eyeing the other stuff when she caught up to him.

She narrowed her eyes a little, not sure if he'd actually had time to pocket anything or not, but there was no way of knowing or not with how scattered things had been. And while she could apparently keep him from outright murdering innocent people she was sure that demanding he turn out his pockets, for something she couldn't even prove he'd done, would result in a loud and protracted argument.

So she settled for making sure he didn't take anything else as she recovered her book, that had mercifully landed with their pack in one of the few legitimately protected areas in the otherwise soaked car.

She sighed with relief as she stowed the book again, ignoring his grumbling as she did, "Let's get out of here." She said, grabbing the map instead.

She wasn't sure how far they'd actually gotten, but knew they were somewhere between halfway and three quarters of the way to Magnolia. Logically if they followed the tracks they'd be led straight into town, but she was nervous about more bandits or guys like Kageyama. Had he even counted as a bandit? She wasn't sure, and really didn't want to meet any more like him today if possible.

It already sucked enough as it was.

"You don't need to tell me twice," Natsu seemed all too eager to be off the train for good. Lucy was just glad that he seemed to be in a better mood now. The last thing she wanted was to deal with his cranky behavior for the rest of their trip.

She groaned as she looked at the storm outside, wondering if it was possible to hitch a ride in weather like this.

It seemed unlikely.

The rest of their trip was bound to be a miserable adventure in hiking, made worse by Natsu. He seemed more than content to go out of his way to either ignore or aggravate her. The former of which was not at all a problem in Lucy's book, but she wasn't always calling the shots in this instance.

"Alright," She sighed, steeling herself for more mud and rotten hiking. Lucy had always wanted a little more out of life than what she was getting. She could handle this. No matter how aggravating it was.

Of course in her dreams Lucy had always imagined herself as a successful author with millions of adoring fans.

Not ankle deep in sludge with a cranky dragon as a traveling companion.

Cringing, Lucy headed back out to the outside, grateful that Natsu was at least shouldering the bag now. She guessed he wasn't a huge fan of how they almost got robbed. Territorial dragons were actually a thing, who would have guessed. It was at least doing Lucy some good.

She didn't know what she would have done if she had to carry the pack in the rain.

She swayed at the entrance, but let out a little scream when Natsu gave her a grumpy push out the door. She tumbled out, barely managing to catch herself and scramble out of the way as he jumped after her.

"Watch it!" She hissed at him.

"Complain, complain, complain," Natsu drawled back, looking unconcerned.

"Ugh, you are such a jerk!" Lucy grumbled as they threaded their way through the other traumatized passengers making their way back to their various cars. For a wonder, some were even still intact despite the damage. That was good. It would at least give them a place to get out of the rain.

That didn't make her want to do that until help arrived though.

She had no desire to get entangled with whatever passed for local law enforcement if she could help it. She was sure that somehow things would come out that she was starting to realize maybe shouldn't be talked about with the general public.

So, since she couldn't spot the road from where they were, she began walking along the

tracks. At least those had the benefit of being out of the mud and therefore easier to walk on in all the rain.

It was the little things in life. Really.

Another small blessing was Natsu was leaving her alone for the moment. She was under no illusion that would last forever, or even very long, but at least she had a few moments of peace now.

And it wasn't much longer before the rain started to slack off and go away. Apparently summer storms were the same no matter what world you were from. That was oddly comforting in a peculiar way.

Of course, because it was summer, it quickly gave way to a lot of humidity and uncomfortableness because she was soaked, but she hadn't expected anything else, so she just bowed her head and slogged through it. At least she would dry reasonably quickly.

That was when she noticed the shadows starting to lengthen, "We should probably start looking for a place to camp." She mused, more to herself than to Natsu. This might be the dragon's territory, but she didn't trust him not to pick a place to camp in the ickiest, swampiest, place he could manage by nightfall.

It was only then she realized that he'd been unusually quiet for quite some time, but when she glanced at him he didn't seem to be doing anything odd. Unless you counted apparently thinking as odd.

Curiouser and curiouser. What could have put him in such an introspective mood?

She jerked a little in surprise when his attention suddenly focused on her, reminding her for a moment of being a mouse caught under the gaze of a hawk, but then he smiled, wide and toothy, as if he didn't have a care in the world.

"You're right!" He exclaimed, in a tone she didn't trust at all, "Let's find a place to camp Lucy!"

Her fears were confirmed when he began to drag her through to some truly horrendous locations, thick with sludge and muck. She had to make him move three times before they found a comfortably dry location where they would not be disturbed,

Natsu huffed as they set up camp, shoving a circle of stones together to create a fire pit. With a single snap of his fingers, a hearty flame was crackling to life, magically fueled as it fed on the logs he gathered.

Lucy rolled out the sleeping bag provided to her by Jura, relieved they could finally get a little bit of peace after the hectic day they had.

She wondered if every day in this strange world was like this It seemed odd she would run into not one but two dark guilds in less than 48 hours.

She fished out some of their packaged food and extended a portion to Natsu. " Here, go on and take some."

Natsu was sitting on the opposite side of the fire, his expression mostly unreadable even for someone who had been getting used to trying to understand him.

He gave her a strange look, his mouth dropping open to say something probably rude to her when his stomach gave a hungry snarl of protest. Lucy couldn't help her smug look.

It seemed like even though Natsu didn't know how to play nice, there was no arguing with his stomach when it had its mind set on something.

Reluctantly he held out a hand to accept the food, grumbling under his breath as his stomach gave him no other option than to take Lucy up on her offer.

Lucy handed it over with a small smile, and settled back to eat her own share. Bless Jura for packing all the essentials. She really would have to do something nice for him if she ever got the chance.

However, it seemed their day wasn't over quite yet, but this interruption she was only too happy to see as Leo stepped out of his gate.

"Oh you don't know how glad I am to see you!" Lucy exclaimed with relief as the lion spirit smiled in amusement.

"I'm sure." He chuckled, "Aquarius gave me quite an earful earlier."

Lucy cringed, "Uh, sorry about that?" She offered, "Did she tell you the whole story...?"

Natsu scowled and grumbled as the two began talking. Great. Just what he needed. He already had his mind on the last time he'd seen any of the spirits in the hands of a celestial wizard. He didn't want to hear that pervy lion flirt with Lucy and watch her lap it up.

Never mind that Leo had yet to produce even one of his usual over the top declarations. He was sure it was only a matter of time.

So he hunched over his food, turned his back and tried not to listen to Lucy asking eager question after eager question. Gods how annoying. She sounded like an enthusiastic hatchling that didn't know how much the world sucked.

It brought uncomfortable memories to mind. Memories of Igneel and learning dragon magic. Of the nest he'd once been a part of.

Things he neither wanted, nor needed, to dwell on. That was centuries ago, and he'd learned the hard way that there was no going back to it. Not even a little.

Mercifully, their talk quickly turned to the subject of contracts and other technical details on how celestial magic worked, so it was easier for him to ignore them.

He was grateful for the indepth, excruciatingly boring explanation on contracting a spirit and the details that fell in accordance to that. Most spirits remained free, but some had been chained to artifacts in order for a celestial mage to summon them to their side. Some, such as Aquarius, still remained sealed to their keys.

Natsu took a vicious bite out of a chicken leg, teeth crunching into the bone and chewing the thing whole. He stared into the fire, disturbed over how the bright-spirited Lucy could make him feel so unsettled.

She reminded him almost of himself. Centuries ago, before he realized there was no point in making nice with a group of people who were only too eager to screw one another over.

But he couldn't shake it.

He stared into the fire, feeling its warmth and remembering a happier time, when he laid asleep on his father's scales. How his belly would grow warm from sprawling on top of Igneel, or the sheltering cover of his wings when it rained.

Worst of all, he could hear Igneel's voice, whispering lessons to him. Teaching him about his letters, words, how to speak to the humans, and how to master control over his dragon form. All of those were things Igneel had taught him.

Understanding how he worked, how he mastered his new magic, it was all thanks to Igneel.

Natsu's heart clenched hard, sadness gripping him like a vice. His shoulders drew up into a hard line, trying to shake off the quiet, laughing voice of Igneel, rumbling in his head.

 _"Do not be afraid Natsu..."_

He wasn't afraid.

He wasn't afraid of anything.

But he was angry. He would forever remain angry at Igneel, and the dragons, and most of all he would remain angry at the humans.

"Thanks Leo," Lucy smiled as Aquarius faded back through her gate with a satisfied smile on her face, and one solid contract secured with the merwoman. Who would have ever guessed that her endless lessons about contracts would have ever come in so handy? Or her stubbornness for that matter?

Her inclination wasn't to fetter Aquarius, or any other spirit that came under her care, but she hadn't been about to just give in to every one of Aquarius' whims either. The result was a solid contract that worked for them both, and a strangely satisfied Aquarius. Maybe she liked it when people showed a spine?

She didn't know, and at the moment she wasn't inclined to care. She was just happy she finally understood something beyond the little fragments of information she'd been working off of. And had a new ally to help her out. Assuming she didn't get drowned in the process. That part was kind of vague actually. Hm.

"It was my pleasure Lucy." Leo purred in reply, inadvertently breaking her thoughts, and gave her a smile that was actually sincere.

Lucy's reactions to his information on keys and how spirits worked had pleased him. There had been no power hunger there. No desire to gather all the most powerful keys and use them as weapons. Just an innocent question once about how many kinds of spirits there were and how many were bound to keys.

That might've made him nervous except her horror when he'd described how celestial wizards had abused their power in the past had been completely real. There was no way to fake that kind of reaction, and it firmed up his belief that if it truly fell out that she was destined to become a celestial wizard...she would make a fine mistress to serve.

Maybe she was a little young and clumsy magically, but that could be forgiven. She was doing very well with only bits of instruction over two days, and he thought maybe he would enjoy teaching her more if it came to it.

He'd been more disturbed to find out about the bond between Natsu and Lucy, and had warned her that he didn't know if Natsu would be pulled with her if she created a gate home. However, she'd simply nodded in a way that hinted she'd already thought of that for herself.

"I have to go now, but as I said, keep an eye out for other keys. They may be wary at first, but if you can befriend them they'll be very helpful to you."

"I will." Lucy replied, "Thanks again."

Leo nodded and stepped through his gate, leaving Lucy and the quietly growling Natsu to settle in for the evening.

* * *

 _ **Alright everyone! Here is your new chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it! Enter Aquarius! Slowly you'll have some insight into Natsu's brain. This is going to be a slow burn guys, they have to find one another first.** _

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	10. Gulliver's Travels

**Hello lovely people! Here is your new update! We genuinely hope you enjoy this one! We're getting close to the end of Act 1 of this fic!**

* * *

 ** _10_**

 ** _Gulliver's Travels_**

 _"They have a notion, that when people are met together, a short silence does much improve conversation: this I found to be true; for during those little intermissions of talk, new ideas would arise in their minds, which very much enlivened the discourse."_  
― Johnathan Swift, _Gulliver's Travels_

* * *

Early morning dawned over the treeline, a drop of morning dew falling to land directly on Natsu's nose. It woke him up from his light doze, causing him to squint up at the early sun. This part of his territory was still thick with trees and not nearly as hot as he tended to like it, but that wasn't what had him tense.

It was sleeping out in the open. Specifically in his human form.

He hadn't been in his human form for so long, he was unfamiliar with how his own body even worked in such a state. The limits of his magic and strength were different, and without his armored hind, he was nervous about sleeping out in the open. Even if he was in his own territory.

He'd had problems with various would-be assassins attacking him in his sleep, in the heart of his own territory, before. Not that Natsu gave them a second chance to try again, but he wasn't keen on repeat performances, and was perhaps somewhat understandably paranoid.

He glanced over at the woman who was the reason he had barely slept at all the past couple of nights. It was by her will that he remained in this vulnerable form. As a dragon, he was almost invincible. But right now? Right now he could not only be hurt, but killed.

He recognized it was primarily Hades' fault. And he would certainly die for his part in forcing him into this shape.

This girl however…

She both enraged and fascinated him in ways he could barely understand. He should hate her, and part of him did for the control she had over him, even if it was unknowing. And yet whenever he was near her she insisted on confusing him with her stubborn morals, her hilarious temper, and her strange acts of kindness. It made him wary, but even though every instinct told him he should stay as far away as the bond allowed, he couldn't resist coming back for more.

He crept over to where she was sound asleep, bending forward by just a hair to peer down at her face.

She seemed harmless enough. Not at all like someone who would be plotting against him. But Natsu had learned by now that most people had far more sinister plans in mind than anything even he could create. They were tools, nothing more. And being a monster meant he could do whatever he wanted.

That was good enough for him.

Still, he guessed at least she was kind of nice to look at. Even if all she did was yell and complain and confuse him.

Lucy shifted a bit in her sleep, to his amusement, inelegantly smashing her face against a wadded up part of the sleeping bag that was serving as her pillow, but also shifting herself directly into the path of a sunbeam.

Mumbling irritably she shifted again, trying to escape it, but the half awareness brought about the awareness that it was getting uncomfortably hot in her sleeping bag.

Natsu watched with amusement as she shifted and groaned, clearly not wanting to wake up. She was funny. If nothing else, he had to give her that. She was freaking hilarious in moments like this, and he couldn't help being entertained by her every reaction. Especially when she squealed and screamed like a little girl. It made him want to torment her more so she would do it again.

This wasn't quite at that level, but it was amusing enough watching her battle with the sunbeam and the rising temperature, something he was helpfully pushing along as much as he could without setting fire to anything she would yell at him for later.

He could actually see the moment she threw her hands up and ripped back the sleeping bag to sit up, desperate for a cooler breath of air.

She blinked blearily around, no doubt wanting to know where he was, and he hastily put out the fire he'd been bathing himself in, and grinned wickedly at her, "Morning Lucy!" He chirped, happily feeding her paranoia.

"Oh god..." Lucy groaned as she tried to orient herself, "It's too early for you."

"It's never too early for me." Natsu smirked at her, the gloom of his mood fading in the face of her grumpy face. Boy he really did love it when she gave him that look.

He flashed upright to his feet, blinking away his own sleep as he moved quickly into an open area, stretching out to feel the sun on his face. Maybe it was hitting it too on the nose, but sometimes he just loved to lay on a rock under the sun for hours. Something he didn't think he would be able to do this time.

Still, it was worth sacrificing the time if it meant seeing Lucy get all worked up in a tizzy. Sometimes he enjoyed listening to her whining, and sometimes it just irritated him. Right now he was amused.

"Come on, you ready to get out of here or you wanna roll over and take another nap?" He asked, a wicked smirk drawing across his lips as he watched her sleep mussed self swaying from where she was seated.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Lucy asked, suspicion coloring her tone, and Natsu's smirk widened.

It was probably a good thing she was so wary of him. It at least meant she had some kind of survival instincts. Which was hilarious considering how often she got right back into his face about his many behavioral problems. The mortal had some guts, he had to give her that much.

He stopped his usual plan of torment, though, when he picked up the sound of voices nearby.

A familiar scent, masked with the smells of a magic-mobile caught his attention, and the smile fell from his face. An uneasy twist in his gut made his skin crawl.

"We've got company," He hissed, eyes narrowed in displeasure, especially since this particular kind of company would make Lucy very happy.

It was _**HER**_.

Lucy looked up at that with a slight frown, wary of company in the middle of nowhere like this, "What kind of company?" She asked standing up, absently smoothing out her clothes and hair as best she could.

Natsu didn't answer except to growl, and a moment later it didn't matter anyway as the sound of a motor running and voices shouting at each other was audible even to her ears.

"Erza! You're driving this thing too fast!"

Lucy's jaw dropped in shock. Had she heard that right?

"We have to find the celestial wizard Jura told us about!" A commanding female voice responded, and Lucy's shock grew.

Was Fairy Tail...looking for her?

The thought warmed her heart in a way little else had done since she'd arrived in this crazy world, and she blessed Jura for apparently calling ahead somehow.

"Yeah, but we're not gonna do that if you get us killed driving like a maniac!" The first voice, a man, shouted back.

"My driving is fine Gray!" The second voice, which she assumed was Erza, snapped back, but a second later she was screaming in fright as a strange looking car literally lunged at them out of the underbrush, and she dove for cover.

"Lookout!" The man shouted, his own eyes going wide at the sight of her as the redhead fought for control of the car thing and tires squealed as she managed to pull it to a stop just short of crashing it into a large tree.

"Okay...that was terrifying." Lucy whimpered shakily.

Seriously, was it some rule of this world that she wasn't allowed to wake up in the morning without having a heart attack of some kind?

Yesterday it was fish to the face. Today it was nearly get killed via weird magic car.

"I _told_ you." Gray groaned from where he was half sprawled in the car and half smushed against the tree.

"Apologies," Erza replied from where she was sprawled over the steering wheel. She somehow managed to straighten herself and tuck her hair from her face, a curtain of red bangs hanging in front of her eyes.

She stepped out from the car, and Lucy was stunned into silence at the sight of this imposing woman. The words on the pages of her book did nothing to truly describe the wave of power and authority this woman gave off. It was incredible. And Gray was no different once he extracted himself.

She had never seen words leap off the page as they had in that moment as she saw both Erza and Gray walking towards her. These were some of the heroes of her book brought to life. Mages of Fairy Tail. The sight was both awe inspiring and utterly indescribable.

Erza turned a kind smile towards her.

"You must be the Lucy Jura told us all about," She said calmly. Her hand drifted towards the sword at her side, but her gaze slid around her surroundings, "He also warned us of your travelling companion, Natsu. Where might he be?"

"Is this is him?" Gray observed a pair of tan legs kicking out from a bush. Natsu had clearly not reacted as quickly as Lucy had in response to the magical car, and as a result had ended up headfirst into the nearest shrub.

Gray crouched down and reached into the leaves, his hand hooking around the fabric of Natsu's vest and yanking backwards.

"Huh. So this is what ol' flamebrain really looks like, huh?" Gray observed, peering at the dragon's face as if he was looking at it for the first time.

And Lucy realized in surprise, it probably _was_ the first time.

"Not quite what I expected." Erza mused as she too got a closer look at the dragon's human form, "But no matter." She turned her attention back to Lucy, "I'm relieved to find you unhurt. Jura warned us you were on your way, but when we heard about the train wreck we feared the worst."

Lucy smiled back at Erza, something in her unknotting at the genuine concern she could see on the other woman's face. She'd been right to want to go to these people.

"Thanks." She replied, "Natsu and I got out of there pretty quick. I was a little worried about more guys showing up, or having to explain things that I really can't to the authorities."

A wry smile twisted Erza's lips, "Hm, I believe I understand where you're coming from there. Though I'd like to hear more about-"

She was cut off as Gray went flying between them to slam against a tree, "You wanna say that again droopy drawers?!" Natsu roared, and Gray's face twisted in anger, "That's it! You're going down you overgrown lizard!"

"Who're you calling a lizard!" Natsu screamed, seemingly more interested in getting into Gray's face than punching it. Which made no sense to Lucy, but little Natsu did actually made sense.

"Uh guys..." She tried to interrupt, but was ignored as the pair snarled and bickered before knocking each other back and powering up their magic, "Guys seriously!"

That had no effect either, and Lucy began to despair of so much as combing her hair and getting a decent breakfast without a massive battle.

Someone must have heard Lucy's prayers though, because a moment later, Erza had risen to grab a fistful of pink and black hair. With a mighty swing, she cracked the two males skulls together. Her form was perfect.

"Lucy said _that is enough_." she growled, the very terrifying image of a demoness. Even Lucy took an instinctive step back.

Where had the kind, concerned, Erza gone? She had been replaced by some sort of titan of fury.

Lucy was awed, but a trifle sympathetic, when she saw Gray and Natsu recoil backwards. Even the latter, who seemed to fear nothing, looked wary over incurring her wrath a second time.

"Now," Her brown eyes glinted with a steely light. It made Lucy extremely grateful she was not the focus of her ire. In fact, Lucy wanted to fall down before this terrifying woman's feet in gratitude alone for saving her from the insanity which had been the past couple of days.

Although she had a sinking suspicion this woman had the possibility of adding to the madness if Lucy didn't keep an eye on her.

"Jura has made it clear you are not from our world Lucy, and yet you have managed to gain Celestial powers strong enough to open gates," Erza slid her visible eye to Lucy, her hands resting at her waist. She looked impressed, "You must be a very powerful mage to have managed such a complicated task."

"Really?" Lucy asked, her eyes sliding from Erza to Gray. The latter nodded, his body seeming to relax the moment Erza's boiling gaze was no longer on it.

"Yeah," He lifted a hand to gesture through the air, "It's not easy popping open a hole to another world. Can you imagine if just anyone could do it? The place would be chaos."

He had a point when he said it like that.

"I'm not entirely convinced this place isn't already chaos," Lucy muttered under her breath.

"Hm?" Erza asked, "Oh nothing!" Lucy replied a tad nervously, ignoring Gray's slight smirk, "So what now?"

"Now we get you two back to the guild." Gray replied, "Gramps wants to have a talk with you both." He eyed her up and down, "Though maybe a stop by the girl's dorm to freshen up, and some breakfast might be in order first."

Lucy flushed self-consciously, "Sorry." She mumbled in embarrassment, "I just got up."

"That's perfectly fine." Erza told her gently, her warm concern back now that Natsu and Gray were behaving themselves, "I'm sure the Master won't mind a slight delay for you to get cleaned up, and Gray can have Mira whip up something for you to eat."

Lucy nodded gratefully, and let herself be herded into the car. She was a little startled to discover that Natsu was extremely reluctant to get in. It was like the train all over again. Only more pronounced.

She had no idea why.

Natsu did not want to get into that rattling, vomit inducing, death trap one bit. Not only was it unlikely he'd be able to hide his motion sickness thanks to the bouncing and uneven terrain, he was going to be sick in front of the popsicle.

That was just horrifying, and he absolutely did not want to give him any more fuel than he already had.

Natsu swallowed around a tight throat as he watched all the humans file into the car. Lucy was giving him a curious look, completely confused over why he was hesitating.

There was no way he could just roll over onto his side this time and pretend to be asleep. No. This time he was going to suffer a good, long time.

He desperately wanted to ask if he could just walk, but unfortunately his pride got the better of him. Not that it would matter. Natsu didn't think he could keep up with a car on foot anyway. He'd get dragged screaming behind Lucy thanks to the bond anyway.

The last thing he needed was a bad road rash thanks to all the trees he hit from here all the way to Magnolia.

So he sucked it up and stepped into the metal carriage, going pale under his tan. It was another one of these horrible iron boxes. Why couldn't they ever just leave him be?

Why did mortals insist on shoving themselves into cans and hurtling themselves uncontrollably through space?

Didn't they have any self preservation instincts? It seemed highly unlikely thanks to their long track record of getting into terrible fights with opponents easily capable of crushing them. Like dragons.

Granted, had they known a dragon's worst enemy was a form of transportation, the battle field was far more level than the humans realized.

"You look pale." Lucy noted in concern, "Are you alright?"

Seriously, he looked absolutely miserable. Like he was being taken to his execution or something. And...was he sweating?

It seemed impossible, but as Erza started up the car it became more pronounced. As did the green tinge to his skin. The moment they took off though, bouncing and rattling over roots and who knew what else, she realized exactly what she was seeing.

He grabbed his stomach with a pained whimper, and leaned over like he was contemplating throwing up all over their feet.

"Natsu...are you motion sick?" She asked incredulously, hardly able to believe what she was seeing. The ferocious, terrifying, demon dragon king was being brought low by a car?

He shot her a baleful look that quickly lost it's effectiveness as his cheeks puffed out, "I hate you." He whined pathetically, and clawed feebly at the window.

He would rather be dragged than deal with this.

He waited for the teasing to start. The mockery of how pathetic it was he was taken out by transportation. The ice prick especially wouldn't be able to resist that.

He didn't notice Lucy motioning Gray to silence as she shifted seats and wrapped the sleeping bag around his shoulders, rubbing her hand over his back soothingly in the process.

She didn't much like him, and she definitely didn't trust him, but she couldn't resist trying to help out when he was so obviously sick.

Even if he bit her for it later.

She ignored the violent flinch from Natsu when she touched him, or the way his dark eyes skittered over to her, as if expecting a blow. She bit her tongue to prevent herself from saying anything to soothe him since Lucy was certain it more than likely wouldn't be received well.

Natsu looked miserable while Gray was clearly put out by having his chance to mock his enemy's misery squandered. Erza stared straight ahead, above all of it. But her eyes were locked on Lucy in the rear view mirror.

Rubbing at the knots of tension in his back, Lucy worked on kneading them loose enough for him to relax. Natsu was giving her a look of disbelief, almost as if she had sprouted wings.

"What're you-" Natsu asked, but snapped his mouth shut when Erza hit a rather large bump in the road. It seemed he thought better of opening it again while he was in the confines of the carriage.

Lucy got the picture from his feeble question though. The intent behind it was clear enough.

"Hush Natsu, you're not feeling well. Let me do this for you, I promise you can go right back to hating me as soon as we get to Magnolia," Lucy sighed, scratching a soft path on the back of his neck to catch his attention.

He gave her a hazy look, flushed and pale at the same time. It was something only capable of being achieved by those who were sick.

Much to her surprise though, Natsu gave her a weak nod, slumping his head back against the window and closing his eyes.

A pang of sympathy ran through her at the sight. He must have really been feeling terrible if he rolled over that easily and listened to her.

* * *

 ** _PHEW! Man this was a fun one! But don't worry guys, we aren't even close to done yet! Ten chapters in, and Fairy Tail finally makes their appearance! (This is still just TWO DAYS into the story. Like... JFC these past days have been pretty hard on poor Lucy)_**

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! -** the-clumsy-one _(possessive? Ha, maybe) _-TheReelIgneel - Mezatron - AnonymousStalkerFriend_ (omg, go sleep) _\- Guest - - Snavej - Ghost King's Queen_ (You ask a lot of very good questions) _\- shvartzit_ (awww, it's okay. C'mere my child, I will give you a new chapter soon) _\- Wonderwomanbatmanfan_ (I dunno, do you think he got a little jelly there? wink, wink) _\- HalfBlackWolfDemon - musicality82695 - Weepingwillowfairy - Guest - fanficlove2014 - SakuraPetal91_ (Yes, Natsu is a bit of a mystery, isn't he?) _\- Twishadowhunter - Avengerika - Pixelbow_ (Dude your screen name is on point) _\- kirby42280 - Princessatj - eternalstarrlight (_ The best part about this is getting to enjoy their growing comfort with one another. That's the stuff. Ye) _\- Pr0fess0rPanda_ (ohoho, does it remind you of What's a Witch? ahahaha... I should probably update that) _\- xxsomthngvague - oreobark - Etrinity - Poxxy (_ Look who snuck in at the last second! And you are right, Lucy does have certain reactions to the strangeness around her)

THANK YOU AGAIN TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! We really do appreciate everything you do for us!


	11. The Odyssey

**Alright guys! We had an incredible turn out for readers! We SO appreciate the kind words! I mean really! 32 Reviewers on the last chapter! I might cry :'D For our new readers, I want you to know we update ONCE EVERY TWO DAYS!**

 **And we are very deliberate when picking out the book titles for each chapter. 10 cookies for anyone who can guess WHY the Odyssey was chosen for this chapter :'D**

* * *

 _ **11**_

 _ **The Odyssey**_

 _"For a friend with an understanding heart is worth no less than a brother"_  
― Homer, _The Odyssey_

* * *

Gray watched in disbelief as Lucy actually crooned and fussed over the sick dragon. From what Jura had told them she was aware that Natsu was dangerous at best, and at worst...well it was better not to think about at worst.

Yet there she was fearlessly wrapping her arms around him and doing her best to make his motion sickness less miserable.

He didn't understand it, but he certainly respected the courage she had for doing it. He didn't think anyone else could've done it even if they'd wanted to. More likely they would've gotten a face full of nauseous demon dragon trying to snarl at them for their trouble.

He glanced at Erza, who was still watching in the rearview mirror, and raised an eyebrow at her. He wondered what she thought of the situation. It was certainly nothing like they'd expected. Despite Jura's assurances that Lucy wasn't being terrorized by Natsu he'd more than expected to find exactly that. A traumatized and terrorized girl.

The fearlessly bold woman they'd found instead had surprised him.

Erza caught the look from Gray, and a corner of her mouth lifted. She was as surprised as he was, but the sight brought her something that perhaps Gray hadn't realized yet. Hope.

Lucy might not be aware of it, but if this was indicative of how much things had progressed in less than three whole days, then the blond was capable of working miracles. No one had been able to get through to Natsu in centuries. Yet there she was quietly taking care of him.

Granted, it wasn't without duress, but that was hardly the point. If it had happened once it would be much easier for it to happen again.

And maybe, just maybe, if it happened enough...End might find himself becoming just Natsu. And that was a hope worth fighting for.

Too long had their lands been ravaged and burned thanks to the dragon's flames. Depending on who was asked, Magnolia was either one of the luckier provinces under Natsu's control, or one of the worst.

The dragon's nest was said to be near the town itself. So for whatever reason, that meant Natsu often protected Magnolia as well as its inhabitants from the attacks of dark guild members or other forces.

His presence intimidated the townsfolk and Natsu seemed to relish in the fear he inspired. Fairy Tail had been trying to carve out an independence from Natsu for centuries, but the dragon's hold was too tight. When he was transformed, he was practically invulnerable. Only Gray, with his devil slaying magic had ever been able to scratch him.

Seeing Natsu like this was strange though. Small. Human looking. Vulnerable. It almost seemed like something out of a dream. If someone had told Erza this was Natsu, she wouldn't have been able to believe them unless she saw the dragon with her own eyes.

Seeing Lucy push a hand against the dragon's sweaty forehead, brushing away pink bangs and exclaiming over how hot he was, made something tickle in Erza's chest.

It was as if a new possibility had opened up for the very first time.

Natsu, too sick for aggression, let out a quiet snicker at the way Lucy withdrew her cool hand from his skin.

"Fire dragon, duh," He mumbled, one dark eye closing as his face pressed into the glass.

"Yeah, yeah." Lucy huffed, but there was an undertone of laughter there as well. The fact that he was able to make snarky comments, even feeble ones, was reassuring, "Makes me wonder what would happen if you ever had an actual fever. You'd probably catch something on fire."

She smiled a bit when he snorted, probably involuntarily, and resumed tending him. Though, by this time, they'd reached the town itself, and she was unable to resist sneaking looks at it.

If Hargeon had been the classic Victorian era port town, then Magnolia was something straight out of historical Paris, and it took her breath away.

Even from the confines of the car she could see bistros and markets. People coming and going and laughing and shouting and talking. Cobbled streets, and boats floating up and down the river. Stone walkways and bridges, and everything in between. Sure, there were a few odd things, like more of what she assumed were magic mobiles, but overall it felt like she'd stepped back in time in the best possible way.

And, best of all, she wouldn't have to give up any of the things she loved most about the modern era. Like baths.

It made her itch to explore it from top to bottom, but that would have to wait for later. For now, she had more important things to think about.

Erza pulled up to the front of what had to be Fairy Tail, and she drank in the sight of it with awe. Just like Gray and Erza, the words in her book had not done the place justice.

"Wow." She breathed softly as she opened the car door and watched Natsu ooze out of it and onto the cobblestones, "Awwww..." She murmured sympathetically, and reached out to help him up.

"That ride really did you in huh?" She asked and smiled a little at him as she held out a bottle of water from her pack, "Here. It'll help settle your stomach."

He stared up at her as if she was speaking a strange foreign language. Like he couldn't comprehend why she was being nice to him and offering him water. Which was both heartbreaking and even more telling than his flinch when she'd first touched him had been.

It made her wonder just how long it had been since he'd known any kind of friendly or caring touch.

The answer was probably too long.

Suspicion clouded his eyes, bracing himself on a knee to push himself upright. Lucy, much to her own surprise, didn't even feel a flicker of hurt when he eyed the water bottle as if it were a grenade in her hands.

She didn't know anything about Natsu. But she realized pretty clearly that no one liked him. That was no doubt largely his fault. But she couldn't help but feel for him. Despite his earlier claims that monsters did monster things, she wasn't convinced he entirely believed it.

He snagged the bottle of water from her hands and hung back, not giving her even a word of thanks. Not that Lucy expected him to.

"Come on Lucy, welcome to Fairy Tail," She heard Erza's calming voice from around the car. Gray and Erza walked ahead of one another and Lucy trailed after, Natsu hanging back even further.

She took a look at his face, but his expression had turned inward. It was like he was completely unaware of her watching him.

But he was looking at the guild with an expression she almost thought was...

Wistful?

She looked away quickly when his gaze lowered back to her face, and she hurried on ahead, feeling his eyes burning into the back of her head. So he had caught her staring at him? Well, nothing to be done about that.

Natsu glared intently at the back of Lucy's head, embarrassment and confusion both coursing through him. He wasn't entirely sure what she'd seen, but he was positive she'd seen _something_ there, and the thought disturbed him. He hated being vulnerable to inspection. Hated showing anyone he could be easily read - dragon faces were harder to recognize emotions.

Maybe it was because they didn't feel as deeply when they were armored.

He waited for Lucy's commentary, partially expecting another one of her sessions of endless questions.

Much to his continued confusion though, she didn't say or do anything about it. She just looked away and continued on her way.

He would be lying if he said he knew just what to make of that.

She hadn't reacted at _all_ the way he expected for the most part. And the parts she did react like he expected to were perfectly reasonable for anyone. Maybe it was normal in her weird world, but it was increasingly leaving him scratching his head.

He was pulled out of his musings as Erza, despite her earlier comments about letting Lucy freshen up, approached the little old man he'd long since learned to respect even in his dragon form.

"Master." Erza greeted, "I wasn't expecting to see you here this early."

"I could hardly stay away given the circumstances." He replied and turned his gaze on Lucy, "So you must be Lucy." He greeted with a kind smile, "Jura told me quite a bit about you. I'm Makarov. The Master of Fairy Tail."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Lucy replied, a hint of awe in her voice. Despite his size, Makarov radiated power in the same way Erza and Gray did only much more strongly. And his presence was just as intent. She quickly found herself trapped in his knowing gaze, and suddenly wanted to blurt out her entire story from the time she'd picked up her precious book.

It was both soothing and a little unnerving.

But she couldn't help relaxing now that she was here.

This was _Fairy Tail_.

Literally the safest place around, and already a legend in her mind. The people she'd read about were leaping off the pages and becoming so much more than mere words. She could see Mirajane behind the counter, smiling happily at her, and someone who simply had to be Juvia clinging comically to Gray's now bare torso. When had he even lost his shirt?

Makarov watched her intently as she glanced around curiously, unable to resist the temptation despite risking being rude. This young woman was certainly interesting.

"Not at all." He chuckled, bringing her attention back to him, "Now, Jura gave us some information about what you were hoping to do, but it would probably be best if we got the whole story from you directly."

Lucy nodded, "Of course. I kinda figured I'd have to tell the whole thing again anyway."

She tried to ignore her complaining stomach as she spoke, having been up for the better part of an hour now without any food or anything.

"That will help a lot." Makarov agreed and his smile widened, "But it can wait a little bit if you would like to take the time to freshen up first." He chuckled at the painfully hopeful look that crossed Lucy's face, "Mira, will you help our young friend out? It looks like you're around the same size."

"Of course Master!" Mirajane chirped and came around the counter, "Come with me Lucy." She smiled, and Lucy managed to somehow restrain herself from kissing the white haired girl in gratitude.

She was taken into the back room, past the heavily drinking Cana, the smoking Wakaba, and laughing Macao. She looked at the faces as she walked after Mirajane, desperately trying to match faces up with descriptions from her book. She hardly noticed Natsu trailing behind her.

Her excitement was palpable as she had Natsu wait outside while she got changed. Her companion looked a little disgruntled and pale, but she didn't know if that was because he was in a guild filled with his enemies or he was still sick from the ride over.

She took the blessed moment provided her to wash up and change. Mira had brought her a plate of food somewhere along the way, giving her some time to eat in private and collect her thoughts. When she opened the door though, Lucy noticed a distinct lack of Natsu sitting by it.

She didn't want to think of where he had wandered off too, but knew he couldn't go too far.

When she reemerged though, the answer was clear. Natsu had somehow managed to instigate a guild-wide fist fight on the tables. He was in a headlock of a burly looking man with white hair. But Lucy watched as he did some odd looking twist and somehow managed to end up on all fours, crouched on his back.

And then Natsu threw his foot back and kicked Gray square in the middle of the chest, earning himself a high-pitched shriek from Juvia.

The resulting tidal wave swept over the table, knocking over the white haired man, a gawking Natsu, and even Gray, who was desperately trying to shake the water woman off.

"Is this okay?" Lucy asked no one in particular, staring at the three picking themselves up from the floor.

Mirajane returned, a tray balanced on her hand and smiled at Lucy, "They always fight like this, although the addition of Natsu here is new. I just hope they don't break the guild."

Lucy wasn't quite sure what to say to that, so she retreated to sit next to Makarov instead. She had no intention of wading into the middle of that mess, and figured this was probably the safest place she could be at the moment short of diving back behind the bar. Which was a perfectly valid option in her opinion considering the way things and people were flying around.

Of course, things intensified a moment later when Erza jumped into the fray barking orders and swinging her sword around. It made Lucy very glad that she was not in the path of the redhead's ire, and she resolved to stay as far away from her temper as possible.

Makarov, however, seemed to have other ideas.

"Erza!" He called, somehow making himself heard over the din, and stood up, "Levy! Jellal! I want to see you in my office with Lucy."

Lucy watched as Erza stopped trying to crack skulls open and pushed out of the mess followed shortly after by a very tall man with blue hair and a tattoo over his eye that her book had not done justice to, and a short woman with hair color and facial features so similar she wondered if they were somehow related. They even had the same color eyes.

Just like all the others, they certainly didn't do their descriptions justice. She smiled at them as they approached, Levy looking slightly scuffed, but otherwise no worse the wear for weaving through the brawl. Jellal didn't so much as have a hair out of place from what she could tell.

"It's nice to meet you." She smiled only to yelp a little when Jellal reached out and yanked her out of the way of a stray piece of table.

"The pleasure's ours." He replied, amusement and warmth both oozing from him. Something she was a little startled to see considering he'd been in the midst of a guilt-laden identity crisis when she'd left off her reading.

Obviously things had not worked out too badly for him.

"Should we do something about them before we go talk Master Makarov?" He asked quietly, yet inexplicably clearly. Lucy was starting to think that even if the man whispered he would be able to make himself heard across the room if he wanted.

"Hm, let them get it out of their systems." Makarov decreed, "Mira, see that they take it outside if it looks like things will get too rowdy."

"Of course Master!" Mirajane smiled, and was it Lucy's imagination or did her smile suddenly seem a touch sharper and scarier than before?

Probably not.

Though she really had to wonder just what their definition of 'too rowdy' was.

"Alright then. Follow me." Makarov said and led them to a small room that, for a mercy, wasn't so far away it dragged Natsu along as well. He gestured for everyone to get settled comfortably around the refreshments that were already waiting. Clearly he was planning for this to take a while. Lucy was personally grateful for the foresight all things considered.

"Now Lucy," He smiled at her, "I have a feeling that your story is a lot more complicated than Jura either knew or let on. Would you be willing to fill in the gaps?"

Lucy nodded and pulled out her book, "It started the other day in my world when I went to the bookstore and found this..."

She smoothed a hand over the rough leather cover, a sense of security washing over her as she held it between her hands. Fingers curled around the spine and edges of the book.

It was her anchor, and Lucy couldn't help but show her nerves when she realized how intensely they all were staring at it.

"This book," Makarov murmured, his smaller hand reaching out to lightly graze over the spine. He stared up at her, a serious expression clouding his face.

"This book holds a tremendous amount of power, yet it bares the mark of Fairy Tail on it," He was awed. His gaze snapped up to Lucy's eyes, who was beginning to feel sheepish under his intense stare.

"You said you found it in your world?" He asked.

Nodding, Lucy fought the instinct to drag the book up to her chest and hide it from view. Instead she reluctantly parted with it, allowing Makarov to take it from her.

"After I bought it, some men chased me," Lucy explained, "I accidentally opened up a gate here and met Natsu soon afterwards."

Makarov stared up at her at that, tension causing his jaw to tighten. He handed the book back to Lucy, who accepted it gratefully.

"And does he know of this book?" He asked, staring at it with a deep expression on his face she couldn't bring voice to.

"No," Lucy shook her head, "I haven't gotten a chance to tell him about it yet."

"Perhaps leaving him in the dark would be the best option," the old guild master sighed, "That book gives off strong magical light, similar to that created by our first Master. Her magic was very similar, which lends me to believe it was hers at one point."

"It is a treasure Natsu could very well desire," Makarov murmured.

"Are you sure about that?" Jellal asked, his eyes on the book itself, "Natsu has never been much the reading type. I don't see his interest spanning far enough to reach books."

Levy looked a little insulted at that, but shook her head.

"I agree with the Master. If he learns of its value, he could attempt to take it," Levy's eyes flashed eagerly to Lucy, "What's in the book?"

Lucy bit her lip, feeling unsure if she should share the contents. What would they think of her if they discovered what was inside it? How she had read into their dark and bitter pasts, thinking they were just stories?

She sighed and hugged it to her stomach, the decision obvious when she looked at their expectant faces.

"It's about all of you. This guild and its history," Lucy shifted her weight, "Since the death of the first master, this book has documented everything. I think."

There was silence in the room after this pronouncement. A silence so profound Lucy felt her nerves starting to stretch. Were they angry? Upset? It was hard to tell, and her inability to quite look them in the eye wasn't helping.

In the end, it was Jellal who broke the horrible silence first.

He shifted back comfortably in his chair and studied her with a look that was both penetrating and benign, "It's our personal history isn't it?" He asked softly, almost gently, and she nodded.

"Every story." She murmured, rubbing her hands nervously over the leather binding, "I know about what Ivan did to Laxus, and how he betrayed the guild. I know how Jet and Droy used to tease Levy when they were little. Before Team Shadowgear. I know how Gray lost so much, and how he fought Juvia and turned her to your side." She bit her lip again, "I even know about the Tower of Heaven."

She winced a little at the sharp intake of breath from Erza over that, but when she risked a glance at them Jellal was just watching her with a gentle knowing she didn't quite understand, but was comforted by anyway.

"Amazing." The blue haired man breathed, sincerity clear on his face, "A true, untainted, chronicle of our history. Mavis was truly a genius."

Lucy blinked a little. That wasn't quite the reaction she'd been expecting. In a very real sense this could be considered a gross violation of privacy. Like reading someone's personal diary.

"You're not angry?" She asked, surprised, but Jellal just shook his head.

"What reason would I have to be angry?" He asked reasonably, "It's true the book contains personal information that should not be casually spoken of, but if Mavis' book chose you to be its keeper, and I believe it did, then you are clearly trustworthy of its secrets."

"But!" Lucy protested and he raised a fine eyebrow at her, "How do you know it chose me? I could be any random person for all you know!"

At that, Levy actually smiled, "Book magic doesn't work that way." She explained, "If the book is as powerful as Master says then you could've looked right at it your whole life and never seen it until it wanted you to. So the fact you found it means you meet all of its criteria. Whatever those are. And Master Mavis wouldn't put something like that in the hands of someone who would hurt Fairy Tail! So you must be trustworthy!"

She bounced a little excitedly, any potential embarrassment forgotten in the wake of such an amazing discovery, "You're like the guild Chronicler now!"

"Chronicler?" Lucy repeated, feeling a little as if the ground had given out under her feet. She caught herself when she felt an armored hand land just under her shoulder blade. Erza gave her a kind look.

"Only if you want to," She smiled at Lucy, "We're fully aware that you wish to return home, but you're more than welcome to stay with us and work as a guild member for money until you make your way back to your own world."

Lucy felt as if her heart was squeezing, a hopeful gleam shuddering through her. The building anxiety she felt over trying to make her way back home loosened. She had no idea how to actually control her gates enough to travel through them herself, and there were plenty of spirits still trapped within keys that would need to be found.

The possibilities ran through her head, an optimistic outlook taking hold of her now that she finally felt safe within the boundary walls of Fairy Tail.

Still, she couldn't just accept could she? As much as something inside her called out eagerly to take this opportunity, she didn't know if she could. If she would be allowed.

And what about Natsu? He was still fighting merrily on the other side of the wall with Gray and the others. Who knew what would happen?

If he found out she accepted, he would have to deal with it. But that was part of the problem.

Weren't they all enemies?

"What about Natsu?" Lucy asked, "He's bound to me and can't leave my side."

"Hm." Makarov hummed thoughtfully, "That is quite an interesting predicament. Natsu's terrorized the entire region for centuries. To have him bound to you, however unintentionally, will relieve quite a few people. However, it also means that you can't go anywhere or do anything without him."

He studied her thoughtfully, and then suddenly grinned devilishly, "I guess that just means he'd have to join Fairy Tail too!"

"What?!"

Makarov waved off the incredulous responses, "Lucy can't work without Natsu, and Natsu can't work with Lucy unless he's an official guild member. Therefore, it's the only reasonable solution if we're going to welcome Lucy while she masters her magic."

"But...Master!" Erza protested, more stunned than anything, "Our battles with him! All the pain and suffering he's caused!"

"It's no more than the pain and suffering I once caused." Jellal spoke up, a hint of old sadness darkening his eyes, and smiled up at her as he caught her hand, "And if I could be redeemed...perhaps Natsu can as well. He needs only to be shown the way as I was."

Lucy smiled at the scene, her heart melting a bit at the evidence that the star crossed lovers had finally come together and seemed to be thriving.

"I agree with Jellal." Makarov said firmly, "Fairy Tail is about second chances, and this may be our opportunity to finally get through to Natsu and give him that chance. I doubt it will be easy, but we can't afford to not try."

Put like that...Lucy wasn't sure how she could refuse.

She worried her lip a little, still uncertain, "What about my magic?" She asked tentatively, "I haven't exactly mastered it, and the only spirit I can summon right now is Aquarius. She's strong and all, but even if I could summon her every time I'd need water. That's bound to be a problem at some point right?"

She was aware of the three of them staring at her in shock and wondered what she'd said that was so shocking now.

"You...can open the lost gates?" Levy finally managed, awe in her voice.

Lucy swallowed, suddenly remembering that even in this strange and magical world, this was an odd skill to have.

She made a sheepish noise in the back of her throat and shifted awkwardly under their dumbstruck stares, "Yes?"

Makarov was the first to recover and coughed into his hand, making himself more comfortable by crossing his arms around the strangely shaped staff he had grasped in the crook of his elbow.

"You truly are a special girl than Lucy. That's a gift very few possess," The laugh let out by Makarov was low and gravelly, scratching at the back of his throat. But he looked cheerful.

"Your solution isn't too hard. We will train you in the art of your style, Jellal here, as you might have read in your book, possesses Heavenly Body magic, which might be the closest you have to Celestial magic," Makarov eyed the blue haired man.

Jellal nodded in agreement, not looking at all opposed to the idea of training Lucy should she accept.

"There is no pressure though," Jellal gave her a kind look, and the tension of learning unfamiliar ways of magic drained from her body. Lucy had read that at one point the man had been a great politician. There was no doubt in her mind that he made a fantastic leader.

"Come to me when you're ready and we can begin at a pace you set."

Gratitude for these people and their kindness bubbled to the surface of Lucy and she gave a happy sigh.

"As for your problem with only being able to summon Aquarius, we might be able to help you with that!" Levy thumped a small fist into her open palm. Her expression was so open and kind, Lucy couldn't help but be sucked into it with her.

"Isn't that right Master?" She asked, hesitating as if second thinking herself.

But Makarov nodded after a long moment.

"After the Celestial war, the keys housing the spirits of the lost gates were scattered," Makarov rumbled, "One of those spirits were entrusted into the care of Fairy Tail."

Erza huffed, her gauntleted arms clinking together as she looked at Lucy seriously.

"And let's not forget," She said calmly, but Lucy could detect the distinct edge of danger to her voice, " _Natsu_ was entrusted with one as well."

"Getting him to turn it over will be difficult." Jellal pointed out with a slight frown, "But if Lucy decides to stay we'll have to." He looked back at her, a small smile curling his lips, "The decision is, of course, still yours."

Lucy looked between the four of them, a little overwhelmed, and not at all sure what to say. On the one hand, she really just wanted to go home again. But on the other, they were offering to help her learn magic. To be part of something bigger than anything she'd ever been part of before.

It was a little frightening to be honest.

All her life she'd read the exciting adventures of other people. Mostly fictional people. Was she really ready to become part of the story herself?

There was a part of her that said no. She wasn't. This wasn't her world, and the only magic she needed to learn was how to get home and go back to her normal life.

Except...what had her normal life amounted to?

She didn't need to work. Yes, she traveled around at times, but she didn't really have any close friends to share it with. No one she saw regularly or would particularly miss her. Certainly no family. The more distant cousins had turned a very cold shoulder when she'd refused to let them 'manage' her money for her.

So what did she have there? Her collection of books?

As precious as that was, her life suddenly seemed very empty and lonely.

Here, she could learn magic. She could be part of something extraordinary, and help people. She would see whole new sights and meet people she would never find at home. A prospect that was exciting now that she had a basic grasp of how this world worked.

Maybe it was more dangerous, and that was a little frightening as well, but her life would not be boring. It would mean something. And that? That was worth more than anything else. Here she would not be Lucky Lucy Heartfilia. She would be Lucy of Fairy Tail.

The prospect excited her.

"We'll worry about the key Natsu's holding later." She spoke up, determination seeping through her as her decision settled, "For now..." She met their eyes firmly, "Please teach me what you can. I want to join Fairy Tail."

Convincing Natsu to join Fairy Tail was going to be a tad on the difficult side, but she was certain they were going to be able to drag him into it. After all, she was safe here and this was no doubt the best place in the world for her to be.

Not dragged around forests by a hot headed dragon that wanted to kill her most of the time.

She couldn't help but smile at the delighted expressions on Erza and Levy's face, matched only by the easy grin of Jellal and Makarov's fatherly nod. For a moment, it was almost as if she felt a sense of belonging.

Which couldn't have been further from the truth if she tried. This was a world she had no chance of being a part of, but somehow she had stumbled into it. The joy that made her feel was calming.

It wasn't a blind sort of eagerness, no. Instead it was almost as if something was being washed from her. Like there was a heaviness on her soul she never knew existed until she found herself being embraced on Erza's breastplate while Levy eagerly took her hand.

She knew from her book, that Fairy Tail considered everyone family.

Having lost her family to illness a very long time ago, it felt strange to be surrounded by these warm people.

She wondered how Natsu would handle it.

Makarov took her free hand in his and gave her a jovial smile, "Alright my dear! You may go out to Mira to receive your guildmark whenever you are ready!"

He coughed under his breath, "And you can be the one to break the news to Natsu."

He squinted at Lucy, "Ah, better take Erza with you just in case."

* * *

 _ **GUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS! LOOK ABOVE~ LOOK ABOVEEEE! We got FANART! Holy crap do you see it? The lovely bakafangirl made us a fantastic cover image for the fic! Excuse us while we wipe away a tear. THANK YOU SO MUCH. I mean I can't even- do you see me exploding over here? Because boom, there I go, all over the walls. Kytrin is super thrilled too, but she's just going to have to scoop me into a jar to save for later or something.**_

 _ **THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! We'll see you all in two days! Hope you can wait that long! The next chapter is** The Most Dangerous Game_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! HalfBlackWolfDemon - Snavej - Poxxy** Oh yeah, we update once every two days. We're a regularly scheduled program y'know - **TheReelIgneel** I feel ya, tsundere completes me too - **Lkityan** a HUGE step - **OgaxHilda - ScarletFlame07** Oh yes, this is a slow burn story - **Wonderwomanbatmanfan - the-clumsy-one - shavartzit** I totally agree with you. How awesome would it to be in Lucy's shoes to meet the characters from her book? - **owlcity2013** yeah, Lucy has a big heart and that's the one fact of her that can't change - **eternalstarrlight** oh yeah, I am really excited for everyones reactions too - **Weepingwillowfairy - Twishadowhunter - joeykatoey - fanficlove2014** he's like a four year old pulling the pigtails on the girl he likes - **Etrinity - brooke0315 - Ghost Kin's Queen - Guest - SakuraPetal91 - musicality82695** Happy WILL make an appearence. Just... later. - oreobark - **Animallover** misery does love company. And yeah! I'm glad you noticed that she ninja'd her way out of the way of the car when Natsu got splatted - **Princessatj** ERRRRRZA - **Alex - Avengerika - Nyomnyomnyom** Welcome back! - **The-Rosette-Wolf - Pixelbow** well I hope this update makes you feel better! And it was totally our intention to make you laugh - **Guest** we stole your heart and we will never give it back!_


	12. The Most Dangerous Game

**Alright everyone, ONWARD!  
**

* * *

 ** _12_**

 ** _The Most Dangerous Game_**

 _"I will not lose my nerve. I will not."_

 _―_ Richard Connell, _The Most Dangerous Game_

* * *

Natsu looked up lazily as Lucy and the others trooped out of the old man's office. The fight had petered out a little while back, mostly thanks to Mirajane transforming and cheerfully announcing that if they didn't take it outside she would put a stop to the fight.

Honestly, it had put a bit of a chill up his spine. She reminded him of some of the demonesses he'd run across. They were almost as terrifying as Erza.

Still, he didn't know what they'd been taking so long in there for. The old man had some kind of magic in place that prevented even him from hearing beyond the door. So he had no idea what they'd been talking about, and being out here alone for so long had left him on edge. Though he _did_ feel a bit better now that he'd had a chance to fight Gray and the rest of these guys. Even in this form he was difficult to beat, and they hadn't been fighting for keeps anyway.

It had felt...good. Like a nest brawl instead of a real fight. He could barely even remember the last time he'd experienced one of those.

So he flashed Lucy a toothy smirk when she walked up, "You all done in there?" He drawled, and crossed his arms, "Not that I care anyway, but what were you doing in there all that time?"

Lucy rolled her eyes at him, "Figuring out quite a bit." She replied primly in that way that never failed to get under his skin, and gave him a smirk so very like the kind he was used to giving that he felt a much bigger chill down his spine. As if frostbite had nailed him in the back with his demon slaying ice or something.

"And you should care Natsu." She continued sweetly, seemingly unaware of the way she'd drawn the attention of the entire guild, "Because I've decided to join Fairy Tail."

Her grin widened, "And since we're currently bound together...that means you do too. At least unofficially. Though Master Makarov says you can take the mark if you want to."

He gaped at her, his brain having shut down somewhere between joining Fairy Tail and he could too. The only thing that registered was that she was clearly enjoying this _way_ too much.

He could hear the confused shouting of the guild behind him, his eyes still locked on Lucy as if something had finally fried in his brain. Which, if he were being honest, was long overdue.

What purpose would he even have for joining a weird guild like Fairy Tail? There was no way they could ever get along. It was impossible. Natsu grit his teeth, an eye twitching and lips quivering around his stiffening smile.

Of all the bratty things to do... This woman had to go ahead and ...

He didn't want to join their stupid guild. Natsu had a nest before and that hadn't worked out well for him at all so there was no point in trying again. Gears snapping back into place in his head, Natsu could hear the protests of the guild members already.

Rolling his eyes, he crossed his arms and gave Lucy a sour look, "Yeah. No thanks. I'm more of a solo act."

"Oh come on," Lucy huffed at him, and Natsu swatted at her foot as she lifted it to nudge his leg, "Think of this as a chance to bury the hatchet with these guys and make friends!"

Gray began to laugh hysterically in the background.

"As if I'd ever be friends with these wimps!" Natsu shouted back, temper flaring hotly at Gray's laughter.

The Devil slayer's chuckles cut off at once and he shouted back, standing up with his foot on the table, "What did you say flamebrain!?"

"You heard me Dairy Queen!"

"Get over here Cherry Head!"

"Why don't you make me snowflake?!"

"See?" Lucy interrupted dropping a slender hand down onto his arm. Natsu felt a new chill run down his spine at the claw-like grip she had on his shoulder and creaked his head over to look at her.

"You're making friends already!" Her voice was sweet, but the icy look in her eyes was deadly.

Was he about to die?

He cringed back, eyes going wide at the sight of her looming over head.

"You're going to join the guild," Lucy insisted, hand relaxing on his right shoulder, thumb drawing a small circle in what she probably thought was an attempt to soothe his rage. It made a curious jolt slide through his veins and made him feel uncomfortably warm.

"At least as long as we're stuck together, alright Natsu?" She forced his gaze up to meet hers, and Natsu felt the stubbornness in himself caving under that soft brown stare.

What. How _stupid._

Did she really think he was going to say-

"Fine," his traitorous mouth grumbled before he could stop himself.

Holy shit.

Natsu very nearly gave into the urge to slap a hand over his mouth in horror. What kind of idiot _was_ he? A flicker of surprise flashed over Lucy's eyes, giving evidence to the complete shock she no doubt felt over his easy compliance.

And the guild itself had fallen totally silent.

"You...what?" Gray choked into the complete silence, though judging by the look on his face he couldn't believe what he'd just heard.

He wasn't the only one.

He didn't mind Lucy joining them. Hell, he thought it was a great idea. She was obviously powerful, and with the kind of magic she could do she would definitely need a strong guild to watch her back while she mastered her own.

Just...firebreath joining as well had not entered even his wildest imaginations.

Erza, predictably, looked absolutely thrilled once she got over being stunned at Natsu's quick compliance. It was enough to terrify him and make him wonder just what had the redhead so happy. It couldn't be Natsu joining. Could it?

It scared him even more that Jellal had a similar expression on his face. Did those two know something the rest of them didn't?

For her part, Lucy broke into a wide, happy, smile once she got over her own shock and actually leaned over to hug the horrified looking dragon for a moment, "Wonderful!" She exclaimed and tugged on his arm, "C'mon! Let's get our marks!"

The guild collectively could not believe their eyes. Lucy had just _hugged_ End. The most violent dragon seen since Acnologia. And she'd gotten away with it without a scratch.

Surely she had to be some kind of angel to be able to do that?

They watched numbly as she actually managed to tug Natsu, mostly unresisting, over to Mirajane to be stamped.

Times had definitely gotten strange.

Natsu himself didn't know how to feel when he suddenly found himself shoved in front of Mira, the Fairy Tail insignia stamp being lifted. He resisted the urge to cringe from it like it was some sort of holy weapon. Especially with all the damn gawking coming from the guild.

"Quit grinning like that you weirdo," Natsu growled at Lucy, grumpy and embarrassed by how he was being shoved center stage like this, "This is only temporary you got that?"

His shoulder tingled where Lucy had gripped it earlier, his tongue darting out to moisten his lips. Heart stuttering at the sight of the calmly smiling Mira and her stamp, he decided that would be where his mark would be.

He turned his right shoulder to Mira and looked away, almost like a child refusing to look at the needle when they were getting a shot.

Mira, much to Natsu's gratitude, decided not to comment on his hesitation. It was too much for him to hold out onto the hope that she hadn't noticed.

"What color would you like?" She asked, bending forward to apply the mark to his shoulder. Natsu grit his fangs at the sensation of the strange magic saturating his skin over the point of contact. She didn't remove it, instead waiting for him to finish the mark himself.

Color.

Licking his lips again, he wedged a fist under his chin as he thought. Temporary though he said it was, Natsu applied careful thinking to what he was going to mark himself with.

Dark red scales flashed in his mind's eye, the bellowing laugh of a dragon long since gone whispering in the back of his head.

That color was unique. Strange even to dragons, and it was a color that Natsu himself couldn't match in his dragon form.

Igneel.

When the stamp was removed, the Fairy Tail mark remained on his arm, but it was a deep shade of red. Almost a jewel-like ruby. A perfect match for Igneel's scales.

Lucy watched with fascination. Applying the guild mark was something she'd read about, but reading it and seeing it were two different things.

When it pulled away from Natsu's arm, leaving the beautiful ruby red, her eyes widened, "Wow." She breathed, and wondered what the color signified to Natsu. It wasn't his own color. He'd been a brighter, more vivid, red in his dragon form. Like the most perfect red rose.

This color was dark enough it would stand out even on his scales.

"Alright, your turn." Mirajane said cheerfully, snapping Lucy out of her fascinated study of Natsu's mark. She held up the stamp with a smile that Lucy just couldn't help returning.

She thought for a moment and held out her hand. This was a momentous decision for her. She wanted to be able to see the proof of it whenever she wanted. It would help remind her of why she'd made her decision in the first place.

Mirajane nodded and gently, but firmly, pressed the stamp to the back of her hand. The magic seeped in, almost tickling, and she felt something within her sing with excitement.

"What color?"

The question startled her for a moment, though it shouldn't have, and she frowned as she thought about it. What color did she want? She thought about the colors that meant the most to her, but the only one that stuck out was her mother's love of pink. It was her favorite too, but not like the way her mother had loved it.

She fondly remembered her mother's pink dresses, and playing dress up, or reading with her while she was in a pink nightgown. It was a color she associated with her happier memories despite the painful ending.

How ironic that her current nemesis had pink hair.

She glanced over at the sulking dragon as the stamp was lifted and rolled her eyes a little before looking down at her new mark.

"Perfect." She murmured with a soft smile.

Hand to eye level, she inspected it closely. The mark looked perfectly at home right there on the top of her hand, stamped and proud with the Fairy Tail symbol.

An amused smile crossed her face as she glanced over at Natsu. He was running a hand over his own mark, looking a little confused over the sudden, new brand to his skin. But she knew she didn't imagine when his curious gaze slid to her, trying to see her guild mark too.

It turned out he was very inquisitive despite himself, but the moment he realized she was staring at him, he childishly huffed and looked away.

Still, Lucy caught him peeking over his shoulder, trying to catch a glimpse of her mark. Lucy subtly hid her hands in her pockets.

Of course she wouldn't be able to hide it forever, but she would be able to annoy Natsu for a few more minutes at the very least.

Laughing at his sour look, she squeaked when she was suddenly lifted up onto Mira's younger brother's shoulders. The tall, burly man Natsu fought with early was a strange fellow. With his penchant for yelling out what made something a 'man,' it at least made him memorable.

Elfman, her brain supplied, taking in the scar on his face and his unruly white hair.

"Welcome to Fairy Tail!" He bellowed, hoisting her up as if she weighed nothing and laughing boisterously, "Lets party!"

Lucy laughed as she was set down and swept away into the crowd. It was fun, and peaceful, and made her feel right at home. As if she had never felt such a thing in a truer sense before in her life.

So enthralled was Lucy, she didn't notice the way Natsu slipped outside, just as the party began to swing into real life.

Natsu picked his way up to the roof, grateful the bond let him do that at least, and tried not to growl at the sound of the party inside. He knew it wasn't for him. He wasn't part of this nest. Not really. It was Lucy they were so glad to have, and he didn't need that rubbed in his face.

He already knew he would be rejected, and was only being tolerated because he was bound to Lucy. And why not? He was their most prominent enemy. And even if he wasn't he knew it wouldn't matter. No one wanted a mixed up freak like him. Still…

He slid trembling fingers over his new mark, something painful, like a sharp stab of hope trying to prick at him.

"It's still weird to see you brood instead of screaming for a fight." A voice said chuckled behind him. He stiffened in surprise for a moment, not having expected to hear that voice directed at him, and looked over at the owner with a slight scowl. Him.

What an unexpected visit.

"What do you want Leo?"

His scowl intensified for a moment, "Shouldn't you be down there where the party is?" He growled resentfully.

"Maybe later." Leo smirked, a slightly wicked glint appearing in his eyes, but moved over to sit down next to Natsu anyway, "I wanted to see you first brat." He reached over and ruffled Natsu's hair affectionately, "I missed this form. Much easier to talk to than your other one."

Natsu snorted, "I didn't miss it." He grumbled, not willing to admit even to himself that he kind of liked the head ruffle. It had been a long time, and before everything had gone to pieces for him Leo had been a little like a big brother to him. He was a companion from before the war. Not quite nest, but close.

It had been a long time since the lion had come to visit. He'd tried, in the beginning, to argue against Natsu acting like the monster he was, and for a while it had worked, but then _that_ day had happened and the lion had not been back since. It made him wonder what had changed that Leo was willing to talk to him again.

It wasn't like he was any different. He was just bonded to Lucy. Sure he understood the spirit being interested in her, but that didn't change _him_.

He had purposefully ignored the spirit every time he made an appearance and Leo had done the same. Natsu had been just awake enough to know Leo hesitated in trying to heal him. Their paths had diverted so wildly from what they had been in the past, they were almost enemies. Not that he really minded. If Natsu was in his place, he was certain he would have just let the orange haired bastard croak.

Back on the beach, with a sluggish wound oozing blood with every hot pump of his heart. Lucy, foolish to this world, was the one to make that call. Natsu hadn't forgotten that.

He just didn't care she saved him.

"Perhaps you didn't," Leo allowed, "But this is your natural form Natsu, you should be more comfortable in it."

Natsu hated the lion was right, but not finding any way to dispute him, he just fell silent. He was right. Monster or not, this was what he truly looked like when the demonic and draconic magics were all stripped away.

"If you've come here to convince me to walk the path of good and be a nice little boy, you should know we've had this conversation before," He grunted.

Silence fell between them, hanging heavy with unspoken words. Each tense second that beat between them was filled with regrets and bitter words from the past neither wanted to broach.

Leo shifted his weight, his cunning eyes locking on Natsu's face. His attention was hard and unyielding, enough so the dragon looked away into the night sky.

"I've been your companion for some time, despite how we have not spoken to one another in over a century," Leo's words were stilted, but each one was spoken with a harshness Natsu had trouble ignoring.

"You've been struggling with yourself," Leo gave him a haughty look, one Natsu wanted badly to tear from his stupid face.

"Leave it alone furball," He growled back at him, fingers flexing in warning. Natsu didn't want to hear what he had left to say. His stomach was flipping already with nausea.

"I won't," Leo refused, standing up to hook a heel against the rooftop, his hands sliding down to his sides. He towered over Natsu in his position.

Not one to be stood over and intimidated, Natsu also jumped to his feet, growling. He pressed in closer to Leo, his eyes nearly black with anger.

"You fought against Zeref in the Celestial war!" Leo exclaimed, "Even though Zeref brought life to all demons, you fought against him. You befriended the spirits and dragons, and helped to destroy Zeref!"

Natsu nearly bit through his tongue at the direction the conversation was going. Legitimate sickness curdled in his stomach and revolted against his insides. Throwing up on Leo was a possibility at this point, "I told you to _leave it alone_."

"And I told you I wouldn't," Leo snapped back at him.

"You've been struggling with yourself forever. Not just because you're a demon or a dragon, but because you're human too!" Leo snapped, "And try as you might, pretend to be a monster all you like - you can't hide the fact your human heart beats stronger than ever."

Natsu bared his fangs in warning at Leo.

"Watch it cat, Lucy hasn't stopped me from tearing out a stripe of you yet. I can slash you back to the celestial realm," Natsu snarled, anger boiling over as Leo not only jammed one of his buttons, but held it down.

Leo bared his fangs right back at Natsu, "You think that's going to stop me for long?" He demanded, "In case you've forgotten, you hold my key!"

He narrowed his eyes and stepped closer to Natsu, "It's past time you faced the truth Natsu." He growled, "Despite what you've been told you're not a monster! Igneel didn't raise you to be one, and until those narrow minded pigs with scales pushed you from your nest you never even considered acting like one!"

He jabbed Natsu's chest where his heart was, "The feeling that has been tearing your heart apart all this time is guilt! You know this is wrong, and now that you finally have a chance to pull your head out of your ass I'm not going to let you squander it! I won't let you disrespect Igneel's memory that way!"

Natsu, who had been momentarily startled by Leo's vehemence, burst into flame at that, "What the hell do you know?!" He roared furiously, lashing out to deck Leo, "Igneel's dead." He snarled darkly, "And I _am_ a monster!"

That had been proved many times since Igneel's death. The stupid cat was wrong.

"If you really believe that." Leo grunted as he rubbed his face where the bruise was forming, "Then Igneel must be rolling in his grave over the fact you've become what you hate most."

Natsu's flames died down, bitter fury blackening his mood. He advanced on Leo and dragged him up by his breastplate, his fingers melting hot prints into the bronze.

"I didn't become a monster, I always was one," He snarled, dragging him to the ledge of the roof. Natsu's eyes flashed with warning and Leo scowled up at him, "You only bothered to come out the moment you thought you saw me waver."

A smirk flashed over his face and he nodded to the mark on his shoulder. A brand of Fairy Tail, "You _gave up_ on me long ago Leo. There's not a damn thing you can do to make me listen to you now." He dragged him close to his face

"Lucy isn't getting your key," He hissed warningly, the steely light entering his eyes, "And I'm going to kill her the moment we're not locked together anymore."

His smirk grew at the flicker of anger in the feline's eyes, the icy fury pushing to the forefront. The spirit's mouth opened, but closed a moment later.

"I told you Leo, I'm a monster," Natsu laughed, the sound coming out a little strained. There was a pitch to his voice, he didn't like, but Leo didn't seem to notice it, "And if I have to prove that to you-..."

"Well I can't wait," He purred.

Natsu shoved the spirit off the roof, watching as he burst into sparkles of light before he hit the ground. His lips twitched downward as Leo disappeared, Natsu's voice carrying softly. Though it was drowned out by the party going on the guild below him.

"I am what I am."

There was nothing left in him to be saved. And nothing would change that. Not even strange blonds from other worlds.

* * *

 ** _Pfft. Sure._**

 ** _Ahhhh! Guys you are all so nice! A few of you came really close to guessing why we named the last chapter 'The Odyssey' - I'm so proud of you all. The Odyssey is a story about returning Home. Way to go thesirenserenity for coming the closest!_**

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED!** \- thesirenserenity - Etrinity - bluebirdeyes - Marie Allen - Animallover - Pixelbow - Compucles - CodenameMise - MonKking - Snavej - Chouxes - Cora-DragonSoul - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - kirby42280 - Guest - Poxxy - fanficlove2014 - owlcity2013 - SakuraPetal91 - HalfBlackWolfDemon - Weepingwillowfairy - The-Rosette-Wolf - Twishadowhunter - Avengerika - bakafangirl - Lkityan - DancesWithSeatbelts - oreobark - eternalstarrlight - LovelyLuna1002_

 ** _No replies this time guys! Sorry, I'm in a bit of a hurry!  
_**


	13. Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

**End Act One**

* * *

 ** _13_**

 ** _The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde_**

 _"I sometimes think if we knew all, we should be more glad to get away."_

 _―_ Robert Louis Stevenson _, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde_

* * *

The next day, Lucy found herself waking up curled up next to Levy with a slightly aching head. Her new friend, who was possibly more book mad than she was, had her head pillowed on a massive tome they'd been going through the night before and was still out cold. Jet and Droy were passed out nearby, the number of tankards around them proof of their inability to drink Cana under the table. She didn't envy their hangovers one bit.

She carefully extracted herself and tiptoed over to the bar where Mirajane was humming happily as she cooked up some breakfast by herself.

Lucy had no idea how Mirajane was so completely unaffected by the drinking she'd done the night before, but she wasn't going to complain at all. She sniffed the food appreciatively as she sat down, "Smells good." She complimented.

"Thanks!" Mirajane chirped, smiling over at the blond, "There's some coffee brewing over there." She gestured to the pot of caffeinated gold, "And you can clean up in the back again if you like."

"Thanks." Lucy replied gratefully and went to go freshen up and get that cup of coffee. She took a few moments to sit and just enjoy it as she woke up, "Would you like a hand?" She offered, "I'm not a great cook or anything, but I can at least avoid burning most things."

She figured it wouldn't be long before the smell of cooking bacon, sausage, and pancakes started to wake up even the most hungover. And those that didn't run at the smell of food would probably descend on it like a pack of starving wolves.

"That would be wonderful Lucy!" Mirajane replied gratefully, "Thanks!"

Lucy smiled and slid back behind the bar, deciding she would think about all the things she still had to worry about, like where she was going to stay and what she was going to do for money while she trained, later. For now, breakfast was the most important thing.

And it was exactly as Lucy predicted. The guild was awake as soon as the food reached its final stages of being completed and everyone began to clamber over one another in their attempts to cut in line for a helping.

Mira seemed quite used to the hungover and grumpy mages, and whispered to Lucy over how everything was specially prepared to help with a hangover. A recipe courtesy of Cana.

Lucy thought that figured.

She glanced around at the milling guild after managing to snatch a plate for herself from the grabby hands of her guildmates. It took some careful maneuvering for her to be able to get around them, but she managed to slide back into a seat next to Levy.

The girl had become a fast friend overnight. All the information she had been able to provide was amazing, and Lucy was thrilled to know a little bit more about this strange new land.

Just as surprising was to realize, her new world was not all that different from her old one. There were obvious changes in architecture and technology of course, as well as new things like the magical wizards and dragons.

However the core of it operated in the same way. There was a government and the guilds operated as sort of a work agency. It was a very interesting set up, and not too different from what she was already used to.

After breakfast, she was pulled to the side by Erza, who insisted that she would be willing to put her up in a small apartment building near Fairy Hills until she mastered her magic enough to go on jobs for the guild. Unfortunately for Lucy, she couldn't live in one of Erza's spare rooms as the Natsu-shaped ball and chain she was attached to would prevent her from entering very far into the building.

Men were not permitted access into Fairy Hills.

Lucy didn't mind, although she didn't like how she was putting Erza out of money for however long it would take for Lucy to get on her feet. The generosity of these people was overwhelming.

No doubt Natsu would be more comfortable away from so many people, and while his idea of comfort wasn't highest on the list of Lucy's priorities, she would rather he not instigate a fight every other hour.

She turned around to find him to share the news, but found he was no where to be seen.

Huffing, Lucy dragged her arms over her chest and tapped her fingers into the crook of her elbow. It wasn't too strange she supposed, Natsu had been gone ever since the previous night. Slipping out without anyone realizing, the dragon had disappeared shortly after receiving his guild mark.

But Lucy had expected he would return by now at the scent of food. The guy was like a bloodhound after all, something like sizzling bacon would surely catch his attention.

During their first odd trek in the woods, Lucy had seen Natsu sniff out rivers for water and rabbits for lunch. Surely he wouldn't hide away for this long - perhaps he was still asleep?

Lucy collected a plate of food, the remaining bits of whatever was left, and headed outside. If he wasn't inside the guild, perhaps he was out of it?

She stepped outside and looked around curiously, "Natsu?" She called. He couldn't possibly have gone too far. Their bond wouldn't permit it. However, it wasn't until she looked up that she actually spotted him. He was sitting on the roof, giving her a lidded look that was probably a glare of some kind, but at that distance it was too difficult to make out the details.

"Natsu! What are you doing up there?" She grinned and held up the plate, "You missed most of breakfast, but I got a plate for you anyway!"

Though she couldn't figure out why he'd missed breakfast in the first place. He was awake, and had to have smelled it cooking. Did he think it wasn't for him or something? Nah, couldn't be. Even if he cared about that, which she doubted he did given his penchant for stealing, he was a member of the guild. He had as much right to it as anyone else.

Though, she supposed them having recently been enemies would make that kind of awkward. Sill...she had the plate now. Why wasn't he moving?

Natsu just glared at her darkly, his conversation, if it could be called that, with Leo was still running through his head. Along with his declared intent to kill her. He meant it. He really _would_ kill her when the bond was lifted. So why did something in him twist painfully at the sight of her smiling and holding up food in offering?

It had to be a trick. There was no way she was really that nice. And it wasn't like Fairy Tail would want him eating their food anyway. He was the enemy. They'd probably rather try to poison him first or something.

So he growled softly and stayed put regardless of how delicious it smelled. Or the fact that she'd loaded it up with enough odds and ends to satisfy even his enormous appetite.

"Natsu?" Lucy frowned when he narrowed his eyes and hunkered down stubbornly, "Aren't you going to come down?"

She frowned in annoyance when his only response was a growl, "Fine then!" She huffed, "If you won't come down on your own...I'll just make you!"

Make him? What? His eyes widened in horror as he suddenly realized what she meant as she started marching towards the edges of their bond boundaries. She wasn't! She was. He yelped as he felt the bond tug at him and tried to hang onto his section of roof only for it to pull even more strongly until with a yelp he had to let go, and was crashing unceremoniously towards the ground.

Lucy smirked a bit at the thud that told her he was finally on the ground and came back, "That's better." She told him with a smile and held the plate out, "Now eat up. I don't want to deal with you cranky because you missed breakfast."

She spotted his hesitation and rolled her eyes, "Honestly Natsu. What's your problem this morning? Normally I have to beat you off the food not try to cram it down your throat."

She watched him peel himself up off the ground, a clod of dirt stuck in one of his rosy spikes. Once he was free from the ground, she sighed and nudged him up with the toe of her foot.

"What're you looking at me like I'm-.." She hesitated and stared at Natsu as her brain blanked out, "-what are dragons even disgusted by?"

Natsu gave her a very smug look, but before he could reply, Lucy cut him off.

"Don't even say 'humans,'" She wagged a finger at him.

Natsu pouted when he was interrupted, and Lucy thought he looked rather like a petulant child the way his cheeks puffed out and he glowered at the ground.

She sat down next to him, ignoring his warning growl. It wasn't like he could hurt her. That thought gave her comfort along with a sense of security that was probably going to get her killed one of these days. But for now she would take shameless advantage.

"C'mon, what's eating you?" Lucy asked, picking a strip of bacon up off the plate and munching into it.

Natsu's eyes practically bugged out of his head at the sight of the simple gesture, and Lucy froze mid-swallow. The intent expression on her companion's face was surprising by itself, and she suddenly realized why he was so hesitant in taking the food.

"Seriously? You think this stuff is poisoned?" Lucy laughed incredulously. A red hue colored Natsu's cheeks, a dusty pink which reminded her of his hair, but the thought was cut off when he snatched the plate from her.

So that _was_ it!

"Why would you think there would be poison in this?" Lucy asked, watching Natsu sniffing it suspiciously.

He shifted his shoulder and his jaw twitched.

A heavy silence fell between them, so thick Lucy thought she might have accidentally stepped into a landmine. A strange expression was on the dragon's face.

He didn't answer her question, but suddenly looked at her so quickly she jumped. Again his gaze was intent, his nose crinkling up near his brow. The intensity behind his fathomless eyes was so fierce, Lucy thought she might catch fire herself.

Somehow through a great force of will, she was able to keep her eyes level with his.

"Why are you so _nice_ to me?" He demanded

Lucy blinked at him, honestly not having expected that particular question given the buildup, and opened her mouth to ask why she shouldn't be when it hit her that it was a legitimate question. Why _was_ she being nice to him?

He'd tried to kill her, threatened to kill her, laughed at her, and been generally rude, inconsiderate, and obnoxious to her. And yet she was going out of her way to make sure he had food, and was taken care of. As much as he would let her anyway. By all rights she shouldn't be doing that. So why was she?

She closed he mouth thoughtfully and studied him, "I don't know." She replied honestly, "For the most part you've been a complete jerk to me. You'd think I would want to return the favor, but I just don't." She canted her head slightly, "Maybe it's because I know that if I'm mean back it'll just create an endless cycle of anger and hate between us, and I have enough on my plate without that."

She grinned a little at him, "Maybe I just don't feel like indulging my inner monster. Maybe I really am just that nice." She shrugged a little, "Whatever the reason, isn't it enough that I am? That I don't really hate you, despite how you've treated me?"

It was Natsu's turn to blink at that absurd answer. She didn't know why she was being nice? What kind of answer was that? No one was nice without a reason! He knew that first hand. She had to have a reason.

As for not hating him...he scoffed at that one.

"Everyone hates me." He told her bluntly, "I'm a monster. No one wants me around, and everyone wants to get rid of the demon dragon."

"Well...to be fair...you _have_ terrorized a lot of people." Lucy pointed out dryly, "Burning forests, trashing towns...if I was one of those people I'd be pretty upset with you too." She shrugged again, "But I'm not one of those people, and except for your attempt to kill me, which didn't work anyway, I don't really hate you. You annoy me, but I don't hate you."

She smirked at him, "And I'll let you in on a secret. We humans are more terrifying monsters than you could ever be."

Natsu rolled his eyes and twisted around, scoffing a bit. His legs crossed under his weight and he bent forward, bracing his hands on his knees as he pressed into Lucy's personal space, "Yeah, I have terrorized a lot of people, which was kind of the point!"

"They never had a cause to hate me before, so I gave them one," He snorted and straightened his shoulders, "I owned up to what I was and I had fun doing it."

He hooked a hand around the plate and balanced it on his knee, looking at it thoughtfully, "You're right about one thing though. You're a monster too. I just happen to have more teeth."

He paused to snap his jaws and give her a petulant look, "Well _most_ of the time."

Lucy gave him a confused look, watching him taking a fistful of food into his mouth and munching loudly. She didn't think he was trying to hurt her feelings by his statement. He genuinely seemed to believe what he was saying. It was a strange idea, but she thought she was starting to get some insight on his thoughts at least.

Honestly though, she thought he sounded a little lonely more than anything.

One thing that did reveal to her though, was Natsu hadn't always been such a colossal jerk. She wondered what happened to change him into the beast he was today.

She watched him closely. The way his grip tightened around the tail of his dirty scarf, even as he ate. Pretend. He was playing pretend. And he had played it for so long, Natsu had begun to believe his own lies.

Lucy knew that look. Playing a part he didn't belong in. She knew the feeling of that all too well. Surrounded by expensive gowns and private tutors. Oh yes, she recognized it. Whatever the circumstances of Natsu's life were, she didn't need to know the details. They shared something that caused that expression on his face, masked by huffy indifference.

"I think you're too suspicious, and wrong," Lucy said firmly, talking over the sounds of his ravenous eating, "Because there has to have been one person in your life to be kind to you just because they wanted to, and for no reason beside that."

Her eyes flashed to the scarf, "You said before you have a large hoard, but you hold onto that."

She pointed at the fabric around his neck and stood up, "That scarf looks messed up, and you've clearly had it a long time. If it didn't mean anything to you, it would have been thrown out a long time ago, wouldn't it?"

Natsu went very still, and his dark eyes widened on her. Knuckles turned white on the hand tight around his scarf, food forgotten in an instant.

 _Nailed it._

"It's sentimental to you, which means someone you care about gave it to you, right?" Lucy brushed off the back of her pants. Her eyes flashed with victory at the slack-jawed expression on Natsu's face.

"Even monsters have things, people, they care about." She told him quietly, "Things they would be willing to go to war to protect." Her lips twitched a little, "Maybe that's one of the reasons we humans are always fighting."

She eyed him gently, a feeling of kinship with the demon dragon rising in her, "Maybe one of these days you'll find something worth protecting again." She smiled, "I hope so."

She turned and headed back inside, leaving a stunned dragon behind her.

Something to protect? Natsu could hardly wrap his mind around the concept. He hadn't had anything to protect since the ones he had fought so hard to protect had turned on him.

He shook his head and snorted a bit. What was he even thinking? He knew better than this. Her words were naive, and he knew it.

He resolutely turned his attention back to his food, determined not to think about it anymore.

 _'Even monsters have things, people, they care about.'_

The words buried themselves into him, settling into his mind and sinking into his being. No. She was wrong. He knew she was. He was not going to think about this anymore. He had nothing to protect and that would never change!

He growled at himself over that until the words were covered, buried away and not to be thought about again. But not once did he dislodge them. Or even shake them loose. And quietly, as such words do, they rooted themselves in deeper.

* * *

 _Alright everyone! Thanks SO MUCH for your sweet reviews! You really are great and we love you like crazy... omg. We had some questions, so we shall do our best to answer them!_

 _We've seen in the canon show Celestial spirits open their own gates. Gemini even used magic on its own. Also, Hologarium often goes out on his own to save Lucy. I think that clock is her MVP spirit, I mean seriously. Anyway, we've also seen Leo go out and do stuff on his own, even sending Virgo instead when he's out on a date. Leo has more flexibility than other spirits I think, but he can basically show up whenever he wants. Even if it's just for a little while._

 _Hope that explained it!_

 ** _SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED!_ \- Guest - Animallover - CharonLumia - Snavej - HalfBlackWolfDemon (ahahahah) - the-clumsy-one - Chouxes - DancesWithSeatbelts (cue evil laughter) - Lkityan - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Pineapple-ninja16 - SakuraPetal91 - Weepingwillowfairy - owlcity2013 - The-Rosette-Wolf - fanficlove2014 (hahaha, yeah we go for humor sometimes ) - kirby42280 - Avengerika - NaluLuva23 (catches your heart) - Princessatj - bakafangirl - Dark Shining Light (Thank you so much for reviewing! Baby steps, baby steps ) - Twishadowhunter - Pixelbow (You're so welcome! We love writing, especially for reviews like this! I'm glad you're not sick anymore!) - Etrinity - eternalstarrlight (wow! I loved reading your review! Your questions will be answered soon!) - - CodenameMise - autumnpixie33 - oreobark - - shvartzit**


	14. Pride and Prejudice

**Act II**

* * *

 **14**

 _ **Pride and Prejudice**_

"To be fond of dancing was a certain step towards falling in love"

― Jane Austen, **_Pride and Prejudice_**

* * *

Weeks passed without incident. Lucy became better at working with her spirits, enough Erza trusted her to go on a job in the next town over. Lucy swallowed nervously as Natsu accompanied her. She had no doubts Erza and Gray were slinking behind in the shadows, spying on their first 'job' together. It wasn't anything really hard. Just cleaning out the stables of an old farm.

An easy task for Aquarius, that was for certain.

Although Lucy wasn't looking forward to the amount of rage Aquarius was bound to give her for the stench of cow manure in her water. She cringed at the thought of the potential drowning she was about to receive and made a mental note to try the task herself before resorting to such drastic measures.

Natsu followed along, looking quite cheerful despite the fact he was dragging himself to the job. They hadn't had to ride any transportation since their destination was so close, which meant they walked.

When they arrived at the site, Lucy was horrified to find it followed Herculean legend. She would have to reroute an entire river to hose out the stables.

She was doomed.

The image of Aquarius' shrieks, followed by Natsu's cackles filled her mind and a cold shiver of dread snuck down her spine.

Even worse, Natsu sent a pointy-toothed, knowing grin over his shoulder at her.

Lucy whined softly, her shoulders dropping as she resigned herself to the inevitable. This was going to suck. Horribly. She sighed as she grabbed her key and headed towards the river near the property. She could already hear Natsu cackling gleefully behind her and hoped that he got smashed in the deluge sure to come.

At least a wave of water from the river wouldn't flow back to the river afterwards and pollute it as long as it was forceful enough. And Aquarius could do forceful.

Buoyed by that thought, and the realization that Aquarius would have license to flood the stables she slashed her key through the air, "Open! Gate of the Water Bearer! Aquarius!"

Was it too much to hope that Aquarius wouldn't smash the stables entirely? Probably.

The now familiar doorbell sound rang out and the blue mermaid appeared, looking peaceful for a moment before scowling at her, "What do you want?" The spirit demanded crankily, "I was getting ready for a date!"

"And I'll be happy to let you go back to that," Lucy assured her placatingly, "But first I need you to flood those stables there." She pointed to the rancid mess behind her, "Thoroughly. Please."

Aquarius stared at her for a long moment with a look Lucy couldn't quite decipher, but it left her wondering if Aquarius was going to do it or just try to drown her and be done with it.

It was more than a little unnerving. Though she didn't dare drop her gaze or show any other classic sign of submission. That probably really _would_ get her downed.

Natsu was already laughing his head off across her. Jerk.

Aquarius' eyes flashed and she smirked wickedly, a sign Lucy understood would mean terrible news for her. Too late, she realized she was standing in the path between Aquarius and the stables.

"Oh no, wait-" Lucy paled, waving a hand in front of her.

But it was too late. Aquarius lifted her urn with a deadly swing, her eyes practically glowing with a sadistic hue.

"You want your precious stables flooded girl?" She roared into the sky _, "I'll give you your flood!"_

Natsu shrieked with loud snorts as he watched a screaming Lucy get swept away by the tide of water, carrying her cruelly through the stables and washing out the other side.

He sobered up a moment later when Aquarius turned her poisonous stare onto him. Natsu refused to admit he swallowed thickly as he stared at the powerful celestial spirit.

She gave him a cool expression, but seemed to disregard him a moment later and disappeared before he could question why she looked at him like that. Not that he cared, Natsu was too happy to be spared her wrath.

A love struck expression crossed Aquarius' face as she floated over to where Lucy was hacking up a lungful of water, "How distasteful, at this rate you'll never get a boyfriend!"

Lucy gave her a sour look and picked herself up from the filthy ground, shaking out her ruined clothes.

She needed a bath. Desperately.

"You don't have to rub it in," Lucy wrung out her shirt and cringed, knowing she wasn't likely to get the smell out any time soon.

"I'll be going now. I have that date with my super hot boyfriend," Aquarius twiddled her fingers at Lucy and faded away, in her wake the soft echos of _boyfriend... boyfriend... boyfriend..._ following.

"Ugh...why does she hate me?" Lucy grumbled to herself, that unclean feeling of disgust making her skin crawl. She hated being dirty like this and desperately wanted a shower and then a bath. Seriously, what had she done to piss the spirit off so much? It had been Aquarius who had initiated contact in the first place! Never mind insisting on a contract!

It was a little like dealing with Natsu all over again. A thoroughly unpleasant task if ever there was one.

She shook her clothes out as best she could and started sloshing towards the client's house. If the client didn't like it he could just deal. The stables were now sparkling clean, as promised, and it was his fault he'd let it get into such a disgusting state in the first place.

She pointedly ignored Natsu as he bounced around pointing and laughing at her, and tried to reign in the urge to kick him or something.

He was starting to really ask for it though.

However, she hadn't gotten halfway across the yard before there was a loud explosion forceful enough to rattle the ground.

"What the-?" She asked only to gasp in alarm as the house went up in flames.

Natsu let out a low whistle, his laughs subsiding in the face of the blaze. He looked a little impressed by the force of the fires, watching as it danced higher than the nearby tree line.

"Wasn't me."

Lucy gasped in shock, cursing her lack of ability to call on Aquarius a second time in a single day. This was worth getting drowned over, but to open the gate again? She didn't have enough magical strength to do it.

"Oh no! The people inside!" She looked around desperately for a water lacrima or something she could use.

"Natsu! Help me find-" She turned to where her pink haired companion had been standing, only to see he was gone. The space was totally empty, no hide nor hair of Natsu's appearance to be found.

"Oh that useless dragon!" Lucy snapped as she ran back into the barn to get a bucket so she could fill it at the river. It would be like trying to douse the fire with a squirt gun, but at least it would be something.

The heat pouring off the building was incredible, and Lucy felt her skin prickle at the feeling of those red hot flames licking at the sky.

She didn't think she could even get close to the building to pull anyone out. Lucy determinedly dragged the bucket closer to the building

At the very least she had to try.

But before she could so much as throw the water onto the front door, a loud sucking sound from the side of the house caught her attention. The flames were quickly beginning to recede, as if magically being pulled away.

Curious, but relieved over this strange miracle, Lucy jogged to the side with her bucket to see where the flames were going.

Bucket and water both crashed on Lucy's foot.

Natsu was standing there, his feet planted shoulder width apart and his shoulders bowing backwards. His mouth was open and he breathed in, a vacuum-like sucking drawing the fire around him like a vortex.

Sharp teeth bit into the flames as if they were nothing, and Lucy's jaw unhinged to her feet.

That was right...

Natsu was a fire dragon.

He consumed the fire, chest expanding as the flames died down away, stripped from the frame of the house. Natsu turned his head as if listening intensely before he sprang forward and smashed through the second story window.

Natsu paid no attention to Lucy or her reaction as he leapt through the window. Honestly, he didn't much care about it. He'd heard the distinct cries of a frightened hatchling, and he'd simply reacted.

Even with the fire he'd eaten he couldn't be sure he'd gotten all of it, and regardless there was no way he was going to leave the howling kid like that.

He peered around the still smoky room and his eyes landed on not one, but two girls, twins he thought, huddled into the corner. He gave them a friendly smile and moved over to crouch down in front of them, far enough away he wasn't crowding them.

"Hey." He crooned at them, "Whaddya say we get out of here huh?"

He held out his hand and his smiled widened into the bright, cheerful, one he'd once worn constantly. It was full of confidence and held no fear. Least of all for anything as scary as fire.

It seemed to do the trick as a moment later he had his arms full of distraught, teary, girls.

He wrapped his arms around them soothingly, "Hey, no more of that." He told them gently, "We're getting out of here remember? No need to cry anymore."

He looked them over and noticed one seemed to be favoring her left foot a little while the other was supporting her. No telling what she'd tripped over when they'd fled the flames. He reached out and gently picked her up before looking at her twin, "Can you hold onto my back?" He asked, shifting so she would have an easier time climbing on.

The girl nodded and in moments he was carrying them both to the window, "Hold on tight!" He called as he leapt out of it and lightly back to the ground.

He noticed Lucy staring at them in awe, but ignored her.

Natsu bent at the waist, unloading the girls gently onto the ground. A cheery smile lit his face and he leaned in forward to them.

"Not so bad right?" He asked them, a hand brushing across his tattered vest to push aside the flames still clinging to him. They fell away harmlessly, as if they were nothing but leaves falling from a crisp, autumn tree.

The girls both relaxed at their apparent safety and gave him watery smiles of agreement. They looked around a second later, their expression of distress returning after they realized their parents were nowhere in sight. Worry flared to life for a moment. But before their next words of where their parents were could erupt from their questioning mouths, Lucy heard the relieved shouts of them arriving.

Together they embraced their children, and Lucy watched in amazement as Natsu slid backwards. He didn't want the credit? What was the big idea?

Lucy shook her head when Natsu made himself scarce, wondering what it was about those children that had him running into a fire to save humans. Didn't he hate them? Natsu had made his feelings on the subject pretty clear.

So she shook off the thanks from the family, going further down the river to where she could find Natsu staring boredly up at the sky.

As if feeling her eyes on him, Natsu glanced up at her approached. Already a huffy pout was on his face, eyes squinting at her and his lower lip jutting out. It was almost cute the way he was all ruffled and trying to act tough.

"You saved those kids," Lucy blinked at him, "Why?"

"Why do you care?" Natsu grumbled huffily and looked away in a sulk. He didn't have to answer her! Why should she care why he saved those brats? Wasn't it good enough that he had?

Lucy considered him for a moment and sat down next to him, though downwind given her recent near drowning in what was essentially sewer water. She was _definitely_ going to be bathing for at least an hour once they made it home. However, that wasn't what was on her mind at the moment.

"I care because I thought you hated humans." She told him softly, "The last thing I expected was for you to save two little girls."

Natsu growled a little and opened his mouth to tell her it wasn't any of her business, "I did it because they were hatchlings." Was what came out instead and he nearly slapped himself on the face. _Why_ did he keep doing that around her?

He could feel her confused eyes focused on him now and grumbled irritably under his breath, "Kids are innocent, and are supposed to be taken care of alright?" He snapped, "I wasn't going to leave anyone in a fire like that."

He was a monster, but he wasn't _that_ sort of monster at least.

Lucy stared at him in astonishment for a moment, and then smiled softly, something in her melting a little that at least Natsu wouldn't leave a child to get hurt, "That was really nice of you." She murmured, and gave the back of his head a small pat, "It may not mean anything to you coming from me, but I thought that was really heroic, and I'm glad you did it."

She was actually rather proud of him too, but she didn't mention that. She doubted he would like knowing it. If he even cared. Which was also debatable.

She nudged him with the toe of her shoe, drawing his attention enough for him to give her a dry look, "You ready to go?"

Lucy was heartened, and seeing the warmth skating across Natsu's cheeks before he looked away. It was evidence enough that her words had gotten through to him just a bit.

She didn't say any more beyond that, because knowing Natsu, he would flip it around on her. The more she got to know Natsu, the more she was beginning to think he liked to deflect questions and compliments with sarcasm and sharp retorts.

His tongue darted out to wet his lips, his ever dark eyes staring out ahead. Knowing he was trying to avoid looking at her, Lucy just smiled and stood up.

"Yeah I guess," He said after a moment, his head swinging up to look at her.

"Besides, you stink awful," Natsu wrinkled his nose at her.

Heaving a sigh, and knowing Natsu's momentary lapse of kindness was gone, Lucy dropped her foot on the back of Natsu's shoulders.

And pushed the dragon face first into the river.

The dragon squawked and windmilled his arms wildly before he toppled into the water. He resurfaced a moment later, looking absolutely surprised by her sneak attack.

"And now you stink too," Lucy grinned down at him, unable to stop the smug expression from flashing over her lips.

She took a few steps backwards from Natsu, who was beginning to regain his bearings.

Slowly he edged himself to the riverbank, off the side of Aquarius' deluge. His fingers twitched into the soil when he pushed himself up.

"Blahblahblah," The dark smirk he favored her with sent a chill down her spine. Lucy remembered sometimes she shouldn't poke the sleeping dragon.

"All I hear is 'oh Natsu, please give me another dip in the toilet water,'" He growled, advancing towards her.

"Really? Is that what you hear? Did you get horse manure in your ears?" Lucy asked with a nervous smile. Secretly though, she was a little relieved to see his pensive look had disappeared under his petty thoughts of revenge.

She laughed, "Well I guess you're going to have to catch me first!"

 _"Get back here Lucy!"_

* * *

 ** _We had some questions about how long this fic will be. Uh, right now it's looking to be at around 50-55 chapters. We have already written 39 chapters to their completion. I am 100% positive we are going to run out of book titles and are going to have to resort to some really obscure books.  
_**

 _ **Or super popular titles. Hahahaha, we'll have 'The Sorcerer's Stone' and the quote line will be 'Yer a wizard Lucy'**  
_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED** \- e **vernightlove - Cora-DragonSoul** (Yeah this story has a lot of evolution) - **Trollala.X** (You. I like you. Join me in watching the world burn.) - **The-Rosette-Wolf** (Oh yeah, we are both up to date on the manga) - **Marie Allen - KittyCrow12** (You have a marvelous day too! And probably around 50 chapters) - **Johnny Spectre - Twishadowhunter - Animallover** (You'll find out about Natsu's past ... soon.) - **HalfBlackWolfDemon (** Hahahahaha, we get to have other spirits soon. And don't worry. We needed laughter) - **Snavej** (You can hug him, but he may bite) - **Chouxes - CodenameMise** (I truly love that Lucy taking a piece of bacon brought you joy. Because out of context that sounds hilarious) - **fanficlove2014** (All will be revealed soon) - **LoneStorm** (you lil' shit Mslead knows you like the Monsters. Don't worry, he has the gooey center somewhere) - **eternalstarrlight** (omg we love you. I agree with your analysis on Lucy. That is the crux of her character in this fic.) - **kirby42280 - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - KawaiiLord** (MAYHAPS) - **NaluLuva23 - RokumonChan** (We await your tears. They keep us youthful and beautiful) **\- Gaia Kame - Avengerika** (Foreshadowing is everywhere in this fic hahahaaha) - **artistofthemind** (We update once every two days. And you'll have to find out who the Dragon of the North is) **\- oreobark - sarara1.8 - Kendran** (HAHAHAHA, your comment is funny. For reasons.) - **Princessatj** (We agreeee) **\- the-clumsy-one - Trainofpeetas - Guest**_


	15. The Three Musketeers

**I guess in this chapter, Natsu would be d'Artagnan**

* * *

 **15**

 **The Three Musketeers**

" _The merit of all things lies in their difficulty."_

― Alexandre Dumas _,_ **_The Three Musketeers_**

* * *

Lucy hummed softly as she studied the job board carefully. Ever since that first, half disastrous, job with the stables she and Natsu had taken a few more lighter ones around town. They weren't much, but they managed to provide enough income for them to buy their own food at least, along with some necessities like clothes for her, while she trained. Natsu was evasive about his own clothing. Which Lucy couldn't complain about. She had to replace her clothes frequently because of her practice.

And she'd trained relentlessly.

With Leo and the guild's help she'd added several new keys to her collection, including Taurus and Cancer's gold zodiac keys, and had gotten strong enough that she was actually able to summon up to three times a day. Though she could still only summon one spirit at a time.

It was a milestone that had seemed to please Leo despite the palpable tension between him and Natsu, and he'd suggested she try out something more challenging.

The question was...what?

"Having trouble deciding?" Gray drawled in amusement as he came up to join her, and grinned. He'd spent a lot of time helping Lucy when he wasn't off on a job, mostly because of his demonslaying magic, and had developed a friendship with the displaced blond. She was genuinely likeable, and he felt sorry that she was stuck with the flamebrain tied to her.

"A little." Lucy admitted with a sigh, "I'm just not sure what's a good challenge and what isn't."

Gray considered the problem for a moment, "Well, how about narrowing it down to what you'd be interested in first?" He suggested, "It'll be easier to find a job if you know what you want to do."

Lucy hummed thoughtfully, "I'm not too picky, but Natsu's getting antsy. Maybe something where he can beat something up?"

The near daily brawls he got into were probably barely taking the edge off her growly dragon.

Gray nodded and tapped a flyer, "How about this one then?" He asked, "It's monster extermination on Mt. Hakobe." He handed it to her, "Erza and I aren't working right now." He noted, "Maybe we could go as backup in case you get in over your heads."

He glanced at the redhead in question. He wasn't eager to let Lucy and Natsu head out on their own to something this big just yet. Too many possibilities for an 'accident' in his mind.

Despite the knowledge that Lucy was not in danger from Natsu thanks to the rather powerful binding spell on him, Gray wasn't going to put it up to chance in case it weakened.

They still didn't know how long the spell would last and they very well couldn't count on Natsu to tell them. Permanent or temporary, they were operating in a gray area.

"Really?" Came Lucy's eager response, breaking Gray out of his hesitant thoughts, "Thank you so much!"

"Natsu probably won't be happy," she mused, looking seemingly relaxed at the idea of facing the dragon's general annoyance.

"Still, he can't complain too much if he gets to beat something up!"

Hands on her hips, Gray watched as Lucy marched out to collect Natsu from the bar. Much to his annoyance, Natsu seemed to slowly be coming into the guild every now and then. His appearances began to increase in frequency, but he still restricted those times to when Lucy was in the guild.

Gray wondered if Natsu felt more comfortable with Lucy around.

Or if that idiot even realized it yet.

"Probably not, the guy is as dumb as a pillowcase full of bricks," He muttered.

"That was a nice thing for you to do Gray my darling." Juvia murmured as she slipped up beside Gray and curled her arm around his waist. The water sprite had befriended Lucy as well, and didn't want to see her hurt either. She wasn't sure what it was, but the guild seemed that much brighter and livelier with Lucy and Natsu around.

Not to mention their budding romance was adorable.

She'd sighed over it more than once, though never where the couple could hear. A few centuries of the mishaps that happened when she spoke whatever was in her head had taught her something about discretion.

Besides, Levy and Erza would've evaporated her or something if she'd spoiled it by saying something. To say nothing of Mirajane or Cana. All the women were eagerly watching to see what the crazy pair would do next. Cana even had a betting pool going.

"I just hope it's enough." Gray murmured, but turned to give her the soft smile he reserved just for her, "Do you want to come too?"

Juvia thought about it for a moment, but then shook her head, "No. Juvia promised to help Levy and Team Shadowgear out with a job." She smiled brightly, "Besides, Juvia is certain Gray can handle anything on the mountain!" She said confidently.

There was a thump outside, followed immediately by Natsu's whiney voice, and Erza stood up, "I believe that's our cue Gray." She stated and headed towards the door.

"Yeah, yeah." Gray sighed and pressed his lips gently against Juvia's, just savoring the taste, "I'll be back in a few days." He murmured seductively as he pulled away.

Gray nearly choked on his own tongue when he felt one of Juvia's hands sneak around to take a handful of his rear. Spine locking into his ribs, an embarrassed blush turned his entire face red.

"Hurry back soon my dear Gray. Juvia will miss this most of all," Juvia gave his rear a happy pat, but the darkness in her eyes made his mouth run dry and a shock of warmth shoot through his limbs.

"A-ack, Juvia!" He hissed, "We're in public y'know!"

Juvia gave her beloved another smile, but this one far lighter than her previous. She pulled away, linking her fingers behind her back and lifting herself onto her toes. A soft peck to his lips was his answer, and Juvia nodded.

"Juvia agrees," She glanced down at the floor, "So you may want to pick up your clothes!"

Somehow having stripped without realizing it, Gray yelped. Even after all these years of having the habit, it seemed he had not gotten used to it. Throwing his arms around the pile of clothing, he gathered it back into his hands and straightened.

After hurriedly dressing again and wishing Juvia another fast goodbye, he walked out to meet Erza, Lucy, and an impatient Natsu.

Left hand feeling strangely heavy, he glanced down at the golden band on his ring finger. Then he stole another look over his shoulder at the guild while he ignored Natsu's complaints over having to team up.

He would have to hurry home soon.

Bringing his attention back to the forefront, he watched Lucy and Natsu arguing with one another. Wild hand gestures from Natsu and a shaking finger from Lucy.

Maybe he would put some money in Cana's betting pool after all.

Gray twisted the ring around his finger, remembering with some fondness the volatile relationship he had with his stubborn sprite at the beginning of their 'friendship.'

Like water, ever patient and fluid, she wore down his frosty exterior until he melted. Flowing easily into her love and staying with her.

Juvia had a knack for these sort of things. Gray was proof of it.

Natsu's head swiveled at Gray, his slanted eyes flaring with anger over his staring.

"Whatcha lookin' at freezerburn!?"

Mood souring immediately, Gray's thoughts pushed to the side as he pounced forward. Rising to the insults as easily as the tide, he balled his hands into fists.

"Unfortunately I'm lookin' at your ugly mug cherry head!"

"What did you say to me Icicle dick?"

"You heard me fire crotch!"

"Girls!" Lucy called stridently over them, her hands planting themselves on her hips, "You're both pretty! Now can we please get going sometime today?"

"Indeed." Erza spoke up, though the way her lips were twitching it was clear she was trying to hold back laughter at the identical looks of horror Natsu and Gray were giving Lucy.

She grabbed them both by the shoulder and frog marched them along, "Come along. Let's go find a carriage and get going."

"Did she just call us girls?" Gray muttered, mostly to himself, and cringed when Erza's expression turned fierce, "Do you have a problem with that?" She growled dangerously.

"No!" Gray squeaked, his horror turning instantly to terror, "I was just asking!"

He exchanged glances with Natsu and they wisely kept their mouths shut as they found transportation to the mountain, and after that Natsu was too busy spending his time sick to care about Lucy calling him a girl. And Gray was having too much fun snickering about it to care any more.

Lucy just rolled her eyes at their antics and settled in to help Natsu's motion sickness as best she could.

It was a task which proved to be entirely fruitless. Natsu was not capable of having a good time in any form of transportation, but that didn't stop Lucy from trying.

"You could just let me transform," Natsu's chest heaved as he tried to claw out the window. Lucy made sure to keep a firm grip on the back of his vest to stop him from getting too far.

"Then I could just fly us all there and never have to step foot into one of these things again," He groaned.

"Pathetic," Gray snorted.

Lucy just sighed and shook her head, "Yeah, sorry, but no." She wagged a finger at him.

"Even if I knew how to let you transform, I very well couldn't just let a dragon roam around Magnolia. You'd never fit in the guild, and I know you'd just hang around in your dragon form all the time if you could," Lucy explained.

Still, she ran a sympathetic hand down his hot back, ignoring his muttered swearing and uncomplimentary insults to her heritage.

It choked off in the sounds of garbled vomit.

She would give him a pass since karma was doing its best to wreck Natsu.

On and on they travelled, time ticking away. Eventually, Erza just punched the groaning dragon into unconsciousness since she was tired of listening to his feeble moans.

So when the carriage finally came to a rolling stop, Natsu once again oozed from it as if no bones were left in his body.

"I..hate...you." Natsu wheezed weakly from his puddle, but was ignored as Lucy discovered for herself just how cold it was up on the mountain, and why having a jacket was a good thing.

If Gray stripped out of his she was totally stealing it. It looked comfortable and warm.

"Cold!" She yelped, her arms instantly wrapping tightly around herself, and wished she'd thought to ask about climate before coming on this trip.

Gray blinked at her, as if a little startled by her reaction, and smirked slightly as he obligingly stripped off his jacket and held it out to her, "Here." He told her, a sympathetic look on his face.

"But.." Lucy protested, "What about-?"

"Me?" His smirk widened into a grin, "Relax. I'm an ice mage. This is my element. It doesn't bother me."

Oh. Well that made sense. Natsu was immune to fire, so why wouldn't Gray be immune to cold?

She reached out and gratefully grabbed his jacket and tugged it on, "Thanks." She murmured, instantly feeling better, and looked around, "So how do we find these Vulcan guys?" She asked, somewhat at a loss now that they were actually there.

"There's several ways." Erza replied calmly, seemingly as unaffected by the cold as Gray, "But most likely they'll find us." Her lips twitched, "They have an attraction for beautiful women, and since they've been ambushing travelers it shouldn't take them long to find us."

"Really?" Natsu croaked and pulled himself up from the icy ground. He propped his elbow up onto his knee, strength and color returning to his face.

"Weird, I don't see any beautiful women around here," Natsu glanced around himself when he straightened, "What're we gonna do for bait?"

An armored gauntlet smashed into the back of his head, but this time with far more deadly intent behind it. Natsu was struck so hard he went flying into a snow drift where his head became buried under three feet of ice.

"You deserved that!" Lucy snapped at Natsu's rear, which was dangling loosely from the man-shaped dent in the snow. Ice shards broke free from the tree overhead and rained down in glittering pieces around Natsu's ankles.

It was the only sign of foliage for as far as the eye could see. Vegetation was sparse the further along the mountain and they were still relatively close to the base.

"The guy has a deathwish," Gray cringed, and he might have looked sympathetic if Natsu hadn't stepped in it so badly.

Snow melted around Natsu's body, until he was released from the drift and shaking the stray chunks out of his damp hair, "What the hell was that for?" He complained.

Erza cracked her knuckles threateningly.

Lucy glared at Natsu for a moment longer before pointedly turning her nose up and focusing on Gray and Erza, "Maybe we should hike a little further in?" She suggested, "If they're after travelers they might get suspicious if we just hang around and don't do anything."

"That's a good point." Gray replied approvingly, and glanced at Erza, who was still growling at the whining dragon, "C'mon you two. The sooner we get moving the sooner we can beat up Vulcans."

"Very well." Erza replied briskly, "Lucy and I shall lead."

Lucy barely had time to blink before she had an armor clad arm around her shoulders and Erza was briskly leading her away from both males.

Gray snorted as he followed after and shot Natsu a dry look, "Nice job." He muttered, "You pissed her off."

Well, sort of. But Gray wasn't about to try and explain the levels of Erza's wrath. It would be much, much, more entertaining to watch her beat it into Natsu. Just the thought had him smirking.

"What?" Natsu protested, "I was just telling the truth!"

Both Lucy and Erza looked back at him, and the demon dragon felt a terrifying chill run up his spine. It was like he was staring at death itself.

Gray was wisely getting out of the immediate area.

"Moron, quit digging yourself deeper," Gray scowled at Natsu, whose legs had frozen at the joints in locked terror.

"Not that I care, but you're gonna die at this rate before you even get to punch a stupid Vulcan," Gray rolled his eyes and marched on.

He tried to play it cool himself, but he couldn't help his own instinctive terror at the vivid reminder of being on the other end of that sword and fist. Now there were two of them...

Natsu didn't stand a chance.

Thankfully any of the possible murder attempts were being pushed to the back of people's minds for the time being. For that Natsu thanked his lucky stars. He might have talked a big game, but there was no denying that Erza was terrifying in far more ways than he knew how to say.

He was so busy wrenching his bare feet from the snow drifts and heating his core body temperature up high enough to melt a path of snow around him, he didn't notice the beady eyes turning onto them as a single unit.

At least until a gust of wind shifted direction, and the distinct scent of ape reached his nose. Natsu stopped, nose twitching in the frigid cold and he had to rub it two or three times to clear his passages out enough for him to try and pick up the scent again.

"Huh. Looks like we got some company," Natsu observed.

* * *

Hahaha, yes. We have 40 chapters hoarded on our computers. However that's because we want to give you all speedy and frequent updates! Seee? It's been nice and very timely! Looooove us! One update every two days!

 **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! Marie Allen** (Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaahahahaha) **\- SakuraPetal91 - Gaia Kame** (oh my. Hahaha don't worry! We update a lot!) - **Trollala.X** (Lets burn the world with our little Natsus) - **Twishadowhunter - Musicality - HalfBlackWolfDemon** (hahaha I'm glad that made you laugh. I thought I was super clever) - **Animallover** (I think he said it before!) - **Snavej** (One chapter every two days :D WE WILL NOT BE SWAYED! Also, in America it's printed as 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone') **\- Etrinity - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - the-clumsy-one** (I definitely read it in Hagrid's voice too) - **kirby42280** (Oh yeah, that was a similarity mentioned before) - **fanficlove2014** (baby steps) - **BakaFangirl** (I'm so glad you like it! We're at Chapter 41 now) - **oreobark - The-Rosette-Wolf** (Oh I don't think Natsu will confess in the chapters to come. I think that's going to be a card drop saved for the end of the series! Yeah we write about a chapter a night. Sometimes more if it's really kickin') - **Princessatj** (I think a little bit of friendship got in your eye) - **Pixelbow** (omg your review is great hahaha. We get a little more fun as it goes on :D) - (I'm glad you like how we're building them. The burn is SLOW) - **Avengerika** (He is a monster, but not that kind of monster :D Natsu has a loooot of character growth, but we do see a bigger problem in the works) - Mari (Yes, it's been said before) **\- Crash8573 - Chouxes - KristyKakes** (I dunno! But welcome to Parallels!) - **eternalstarrlight** (omg wowwwww, love it. Yes, that scene was meant to build characters. Hahaha, and you'll find out about their living arrangements soon. Yes. Natsu is a teddy bear) - **BlessYourStar21** (welcome to the crazy train! I hope you enjoy your stay!) - **Mo0nyMoon** (omg no we kept you up SO LATE) - **Celtika82** (Well you found us now!) - **Poxxy** (oh no! Well kick back and relax! I'm glad you could catch up with us!)


	16. The Lost World

**OH BITCHIN' A STORY ABOUT DINOSAURS. YES. YOU GUYS KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS...**

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 **16**

 **The Lost World**

 _"All your life people will tell you things. And most of the time, probably ninety-five percent of the time, what they'll tell you will be wrong."―_ Michael Crichton _, The Lost World_

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Lucy screamed as she, Natsu, and Taurus all went flying from the force of the explosion caused by Natsu punching ice, "Why'd you have to punch the ice?!" She shrieked as they bounced out of the cave they'd wound up in when a vulcan had carried her off shortly after the fight began, and began rolling down a snowy embankment straight towards a cliff.

It was not her most auspicious introduction to mainline jobs.

Even with Erza and Gray helping her first job, what should've been an easy monster hunt on Mt. Hakobe, had turned into a complete mess.

First, there had been more monsters than they'd realized. Then some had proved to be stronger then they realized. And now this.

It made her wish she'd stayed in bed today.

Not that she particularly had that wish on her mind at the moment. She was much more concerned with not plunging headlong into the ravine below her. She tried to scrabble for something to slow her down, but just wound up grabbing Natsu instead, "We're going to die!" She cried as she felt that moment of weightlessness hit her before gravity caught up and they began to fall, and desperately wished they were somewhere else. Anywhere else. As long as they weren't falling.

She felt a powerful tug on her magic as the wish seemed to take form and before her startled eyes a gate opened underneath them and they were falling through.

Natsu's eyes nearly bugged out of his head as he looked down, his arms twisting around Lucy to keep her upright and supported. Over the time spent together, he had gotten used to being joined to her. She was a curious oddity, but with enough practice they were able to work well enough as a team they didn't accidentally almost kill one another.

However at the sight of the gate yawning open beneath them, Natsu's stomach dropped out his feet.

Lucy's talent at creating gates was hit or miss. Usually miss. One time they ended up almost on the bottom of the ocean, and had it not been for Juvia's quick thinking at the time, they probably would have drowned.

Knowing his luck, Lucy's gate was bound to launch them into the celestial realm itself or something equally horrifying.

They slid through the gate as a pair, leaving behind Gray and Erza when they dropped through, slamming into hard ground. Natsu wheezed when Lucy landed on his stomach, causing all the air from his lungs to go rushing out.

He groaned, rolling a hand around his stomach and shoving her off him.

"Idiot," He whined, "I could have just caught you and jumped to safety."

He pitched his voice high, mimicking hers, " _'Oh no we're going to die!'_ "

"So your great idea is to throw us through some random gate and _hope_ we don't die," Natsu muttered sarcastically.

"Hey, it's not like I did it on purpose!" Lucy protested, flushing a bit in mingled indignation and embarrassment, and climbed to her feet. She knew better than to expect Natsu to give her a hand up or anything. The one time she'd asked for one he'd laughed himself sick.

She glanced around at the place they'd wound up. It was still in the mountains, somewhere, but rather than snow they were looking at a gorgeous little valley. It made her wish she had a camera.

"So, any idea where we are?" She asked hopefully.

Natsu might be a complete jerk, but at least he was well traveled. There hadn't been anywhere she'd dropped them yet that he hadn't been able to identify. With luck the trend would continue.

When her question was met with silence she turned to look at him and found him staring at the other end of the valley with what she thought might be horror.

"Natsu? What's wrong?" She looked beyond him to what he was staring at and gasped at the very obvious signs of fire damage and other destruction that scarred the other end of the valley.

"What...what happened here?" She whispered, trying to make sense of what was clearly a battlefield, and blinked when she noticed Natsu's fists clench, but he looked rather pale under his tan.

"Get us out of here." He growled tensely, and when she opened her mouth to ask why he looked at her sharply, pulling her up short with the actual fear in his eyes, "Don't ask questions. Just do it!"

She nodded and started to concentrate, focusing on Fairy Tail, but was almost immediately interrupted by the sound of great wings flapping, and she gasped when she looked up and found another dragon bearing down on them.

Oh this could not be good.

Stumbling at Natsu's firm push against her shoulder, Lucy found herself being shoved behind him as the dragon dropped down in front of them. Its body was large, a tinted grayish blue along the hard ridges of its back. There were strange circular grooves littering the dragon, and Lucy nearly swallowed her tongue when she realized how enormous this dragon was.

This one was almost as large as Natsu in his dragon form, and Lucy had almost forgotten that Natsu's current appearance was merely a temporary situation. He was usually far scarier.

"So!" The dragon rumbled, and Lucy started at the feminine voice which left its mouth. Unable to smother her gasp, Lucy dropped her chin into Natsu's scarf.

For whatever reason, it seemed even darker and dirtier than it had before. Lucy wondered if it only looked like that because of the heavy shadow cast by this dragoness.

"The great END returns to the banished lands for a visit, what a high honor," The dragoness sneered down at Natsu.

Lucy knew she didn't imagine the way a trickle of sweat ran down his temple and the hard swallow he took. It was as if he was nervous about something. Something she couldn't put her finger on.

Why would he be anxious around another dragon?

"Motherglare, you came by yourself," Natsu said lazily, his dark eyes scanning the horizon. Lucy thought he sounded casual, but the grip he kept on her forearm to keep her behind him was anything but.

"What purpose would I have to bring the others with me?" She glared down at him, mean eyes gleaming coldly down at the two, "Although I must say, I didn't recognize you in such a state. So small... so vulnerable."

"We heard rumors your territory was unprotected, and you had somehow managed to get yourself bound to a human wretch," Motherglare inspected Lucy, "Is this her?"

Lucy took a step backwards, grateful for the way Natsu seemed insistent on shielding her from view.

"It doesn't matter," Natsu supplied quickly, "We're leaving."

Motherglare cocked her head in a way that made Lucy think she was smirking. It was a little hard to tell given how stiff and unexpressive her face was. At least, by her standards. Who knew what Natsu was reading on it. Though from the way he was tensed she doubted it was anything good.

"Leaving?" The dragoness purred darkly, "Oh, but you can't leave yet. You just got here. Don't you want to visit with your old nestmate for a while first Mongrel? It's been so long after all!"

"Nestmate?" She asked before she could stop herself, and found herself shrinking back a little under the dragoness' sudden attention.

"Oh yes." Motherglare purred in apparent delight and settled herself comfortably, "You wouldn't know would you? About how his worthless drake of a father had the gall to adopt him, the demonized human freak created by Zeref, and raise him as his own hatchling!"

She roared out a derisive laugh, enjoying the way Natsu was getting angrier, but didn't change. It seemed he really was bound. How delightful!

"Once that fool Igneel was dead we let the Demon Mongrel know his place." She continued, superiority and condescension dripping from every word, "But now he's returned to his former nest, and it brings me such delight that I was the one to get here first."

She focused her gaze on Natsu, her hatred shining through, "After all, we yet have unfinished business." She growled.

Was that really true? Lucy watched the way Natsu's teeth grit, fierce and angry. His body trembled in rage, fury coating the back of his throat by the looks of the smoke spilling out the corners of his lips.

Had he really been once a human?

And what kind of past did he have with these... people?

Or dragons.

Or whatever.

Natsu's entire body seemed to coil as the dragoness' teeth bore down into a sharp-toothed snarl. Every fang was as sharp as a needle and just as deadly as any knife. Lucy's heart strangled itself in her throat, a real, instinctual fear gripping tightly onto her very soul.

She had forgotten how terrifying a dragon was. How out of the ordinary, even this world, a dragon could be.

Natsu didn't seem phased by the intimidating appearance, considering he was a dragon himself, Lucy supposed it was the same as looking into a mirror.

"Fine, you wanna fight?" His fists balled up, fire flaring to life bright enough to surround his elbows.

"I don't need to transform to be able to tear you to pieces Motherglare," Natsu snarled up at her, "I kicked you and your pathetic nest clear off my territory before, and I can do it again."

"The small one is so confident," She sneered back, "But how can you hope to possibly beat the whole nest again, weakened as you are."

Natsu had nothing to say, and Lucy felt a real shock of fear run through her. Natsu always had something to say, but for whatever reason, words seemed to fail him.

"So what? I'm here to help him, even if all you want to do is pick a fight!" Lucy shouted up at her, somehow finding her voice even gripped by fear as she was.

Both dragons turned to stare at her incredulously for a moment before Motherglare burst into roars of laughter.

"You?" The dragoness laughed, "And what can you do human girl?" She lowered her head to Lucy's level, giving her a very uncomfortably close view of her teeth, "You don't even know dragon magic. You couldn't scratch my scales!"

Lucy's eyes had widened a little again with the sudden proximity, but then a faint smirk curled her lips as an idea came to her, "Maybe not." She replied, ignoring Natsu's frantic efforts to keep her behind him as she stepped around him, looking far more bold than she really felt, "But I don't have to scratch your ugly scales to defeat you!"

"Lucy what are you doing?" Natsu hissed, genuinely alarmed over the way Lucy was standing up to Motherglare. Though he kind of had to admire her brass for talking back like that. Insulting a dragon's scales was a deep offense. They were vain creatures after all.

"I will swallow you in one gulp human!" Motherglare roared indignantly, "Who do you think you are to insult me?"

Lucy glared back at the dragon despite her fear, "Who are you to insult Natsu?" She demanded, even as she began desperately working the magic that just might give Natsu the opening he needed, "You insult his father for being able to see beyond his own species and take him in as his own son. You insult Natsu for his heritage, which is not something he had any control over, and is not only wrong, it's narrow minded and bigoted!"

"Lucy..." Natsu murmured, stunned by her words, but she wasn't finished, "And then you kicked him out after his dad died because he was different? What kind of monsters are you and this nest of yours?! I don't blame him for terrorizing you jerks after something like that!"

She felt her magic surge and for once it did what she wanted. The golden outline of a gate formed underneath the dragoness, and she smirked, "And I definitely won't blame him for beating you straight to the bottom of the ocean!"

"What?!" Motherglare growled in surprise as the magic surged again and the gate opened under her feet.

The gate wasn't quite large enough to do the task Lucy wanted. After all, Mother Glare was a very large dragon and she had never opened a gate large enough to carry more than two human-shaped passengers. Mother Glare was far larger than that.

However, it did have the effect of capturing her back two legs and tail, sliding her backwards until she was rolled onto her back and lodged into the opening of the gate.

"Oh! Shoot!" Lucy gasped, watching the dragon's claws scrabbling against the hard dirt to try and find enough purchase to pull herself up.

The sound of splashing, and water bubbling out around the dragon's body, showed evidence to just where she had been trying to send the dragoness. Just to no avail.

Still, at least she looked ridiculous, swinging her long neck back and forth as she tried to wrestle herself free.

Natsu didn't bother to hold back his roars of laughter, his head throwing back and hard chuckles shaking his broad shoulders. Tears of mirth streamed down his cheeks and he doubled over his stomach.

"Gods! W-Were you trying to...send her to the bottom of the ocean!?" He wheezed between words, ignoring how the dragon was howling her fury into the sky.

"Don't laugh!" Lucy protested, cheeks rounding out when she puffed out a breath. "I tried my hardest! It's not my fault she's so- so- huge!"

Still, she couldn't help but admire the body-shaking laughter her little magic trick had caused in Natsu. It was as if his face was made to smile, even if his current expression was a touch on the mean spirited side thanks to the recent mockery from Motherglare.

He shook his head, his choking laughter breaking off into hacks and coughs, his smile never fading while he fought to regain his breath. It was clearly a hard battle, but he won out just as Motherglare was regaining her balance.

"I will kill you both!" The dragoness' cry shrieked into the sky.

In her mouth, the faint glow of light began to form, even as her neck thrashed from side to side, trying to free herself from her watery prison even just an inch.

"Uh oh, better go," Natsu snagged Lucy's hand and turned, dragging her a few steps forward.

Then all of a sudden, she felt him twist, and a strong arm caught just under her knees. When suddenly she was lifted into the air.

"Hold on tight." Natsu purred at her, his grin still tugging at his lips, and smirked at her look of confusion before he tightened his grip on her, ignited his feet, and rocketed out of there.

His smirk widened a little when she shrieked a little in fright and grabbed hold of him tightly as they moved. Lucy really was completely ridiculous. She yelled and screamed all the time, mostly in fright, and complained when she wasn't doing that. She chattered about useless, boring, things and...she had stood up for him. To Motherglare.

Admittedly it hadn't been the best defense he'd ever heard, but she'd meant it, and that caused a small curl of warmth, that had nothing to with his fire, in his chest.

"You're such a weirdo." He told her, but for a change his tone wasn't derogatory.

He couldn't help reluctantly admiring her for what she'd done. Not a lot of people could

stand up to a dragon. Especially humans. Their fear of dragons was practically racially instinctive after how long dragons had spent eating them.

Maybe it was stupid courage, but he could still admire that kind of courage.

If only a little.

"At least it worked!" She replied, a smile curling her own lips as she settled more comfortably in for the run.

Natsu didn't understand her. He really didn't. Lucy seemed perfectly content with clinging to him and letting out the occasional shriek when Natsu swerved around a rock, cliff or burned out tree. The roars of Motherglare whispered in the distance, but Natsu didn't slow his pace since she could be on them in an moment the instant she freed herself.

Still, he busied himself with running through the old territory he had grown up in, muscle memory taking over and doing nothing to distract his thoughts. The ground was soft to his right, he avoided it. An old tree up ahead had a low branch that was curved just out of sight - how many times had Natsu sprinted headlong into it as a hatchling?

This time Natsu hopped over it, snorting out a laugh as Lucy's arms flung themselves around his neck. She squeezed hard enough to choke him, but her small scream humored him.

He landed down on a heel and pivoted behind him to see if they were still being followed. Luckily they weren't, but that didn't mean the dragons wouldn't try to hunt them down so long as they remained in their territory.

He had grown up in these lands, but was also responsible for burning apart every acre of it he could destroy. After he had been pushed out from his nest, Natsu had been so confused.

No matter how many times he tried to return, he had been chased out. Igneel had told him at the time that the dragons were his family, so Natsu hadn't wanted to give up on the possibility that one day he could go home.

Eventually, when the years wore on, and it became clear Natsu didn't have a home anywhere, he returned once more. But this time he came with fire on his mind and revenge heavy in his heart.

Natsu burned the entire lands, forcing the dragons to live in their pitiful wasteland. The territory to the south belonged to him, and should they try to take it - he wouldn't hesitate to destroy them.

After all, they made it clear they weren't his family.

Still, he never thought he could come back here. Especially not in this form.

Much less smile while he was here.

He gave Lucy a mystified look. She was too distracted by his wild swerving to notice, but he was happy enough not to point it out to her.

Humans rejected him since his turn into a demon, the demons only cared on how to use him, and the dragons thought he was a monster.

Even the supposed paragons of this world all saw him as a monster. Even after he assisted in fighting alongside the humans in the Celestial war. It didn't matter.

Was Lucy's defense of him all an act? Or was it genuine? He didn't know, but the effect it had on him was unnerving.

* * *

 _ **...FRIKKIN DRAGONS!**_

 _ **Pixelbow brought up a question concerning the ages of the characters. In chapter ONE, (yeah, going back a while), Lucy reads in her book that the wizards of Fairy Tail are centuries year old. Going off a more traditional old-book style of aging magical people/creatures.**_

 _ **Natsu by himself is reaaaaally old. Which means his conflict with Fairy Tail has easily been going on for centuries.**_

 _ **ALRIGHT! Special thanks to everyone who reviewed! Kytrin and I read every single one of your kind words! -** HalfBlackWolfDemon - KaUiA - Trollala.X (cliffy wasn't so bad was it? :D) - KirstyKakes (Yep! We update quickly!) - PrincessSyv - KittyCrow12 (well his well-toned rump gets handed to him by SOMEBODY) - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Guest - Pixelbow (Never apologize for opening with a 'YAY'.) shavrtzit (HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Consider this a present) - Mo0nyMoon (He is a total jerk hahaha) - the-clumsy-one - Animallover - lollilollicandypop (welcome!) - OgaxHilda - Crash8573 - Poxxy - sarara1.8 (and we love you!) - Avengerika (hahaha I see what you did there. I can tell you straight up, the ending won't be like Inuyasha :D ) - SakuraPetal91 - Snavej (GET OUT OF HERE WITH YOUR FROZEN. IT IS NOT WELCOME HERE, I'm having Once Upon a Time war-flashbacks now) - jwadd2 (Natsu's powers are sort of a gray area for him right now) - kurochan94 - BakaFangirl - kirby42280 (that is more than enough! Thank you!) - fanficlove2014 (Everyone loved the sass this chapter. Hahahah) - BlessYourStar 21 (Thank you! It helps that when we first started posting, we already had Act 1 mostly written down) - Princessatj - The-Rosette-Wolf (Kytrin has been writing longer than me and she's been my beta foreeeever.) - Wxnderland (WILL DO!) - (Natsu is my fave too) - oreobark - Twishadowhunter - Amelia Loves Anime (You are welcome! We try hard!) - Guest (Well you don't have to wait long!) - Nalu4ever! (muah we love you too) - artistofthemind - Mechanical-Rose-Sama (I hope you don't mind dragons instead of Vulcan) - eternalstarrlight (Juvia is very perceptive to the budding romance! She is Juvia after all. Maybe some dragon riding is in the future...) - Your Fan (Nice try! That was still a fun theory though!) - IIRipTidesII (glad you like it!) _


	17. To Kill a Mockingbird

**_I love this quote_**

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 ** _17_**

 ** _To Kill A Mockingbird_**

 _"Real courage is when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what."_

― Harper Lee ** _, To Kill a Mockingbird_**

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Lucy didn't say anything more until Natsu set her down so they could make camp in a clearing that was, hopefully, really far away from any pursuing dragons. She'd had just about enough of those for the day thanks.

At least they still had all the travel supplies Jura had given them. Natsu had brought the pack with him for reasons he wouldn't explain, but she was very grateful for now. And they were camped in the middle of an old pine forest, which meant plenty of fuel for a fire.

Hilariously, Natsu was too tired after all his fire aided running to actually ignite it, so she did it the human way. Mercifully, these people had invented matches, so she didn't have to try and figure out how to do it with a flint and steel. It was almost comical though watching Natsu's expression as she built and lit the fire. It was as if he was seeing the most amazing magic ever.

Perhaps he was. To her it was just a skill her father had taught her back when they used to light fires in the fire pit and stare up at the stars or tell stories. But maybe to a fire dragon being able to make fire without magic was amazing?

She mentally shrugged a little. She wasn't too concerned about finding out. Asking would probably get one of Natsu's patented smart ass answers, and start an argument. Or at least annoy her. And the quiet between them they had now was a nice change of pace.

So she quietly built up the fire until it was tall and bright and just a little too hot for her taste, "Okay. Eat up." She told him, a small smile curling her lips, "I'm sure you're hungry after all that running."

Natsu gave her a drowsy look, his brain clearly not operating at maximum efficiency. But his blinks came in a bit slowly as he slowly seemed to understand what she was saying.

"Huh?" His brows furrowed and he glanced at the pit, "What, you mean the fire? Don't you need it to cook whatever is in that stupid pack?"

He glanced back towards the snow ladened trees, "Besides, it's too cold for a human to survive out here." They had attempted to head back north, and as a result had ended back in more snowy temperatures.

They were still in dragon territory, which Natsu was hesitant about lingering in, but it also meant they were close on the boundary of _**his**_ territory.

The iron dragon.

Natsu had only seen him a handful of times before. Metal scales glinting on the battlefield of the Celestial War. But he was like Natsu.

A freak to the core.

So he couldn't help but feel a sort of kinship with the other dragon, despite the fact they had only ever barked out a few snarling insults at one another in the past.

They stayed out of one another's territory, and that kept an easy peace between them.

Still, Natsu was getting anxious. They were getting closer and closer to that dragon's boundary lines, almost as if they were being herded there.

Still, even the shelter of the trees wouldn't hide them forever. They were going to be caught if they stayed put.

And no matter what flimsy jacket that was gifted to her by Gray was over her shoulders, she was going to turn into a Lucy sized popsicle tonight for sure.

Lucy took a moment to look genuinely surprised before a smile relaxed her face. She always seemed to get that really strange look on her face right before she did something super weird.

"Come on Natsu, don't be proud," She pulled a wooden log from the fire and held the crackling branch out to him. Natsu's heart jumped into his throat and a flood of fresh saliva saturated his mouth. Hunger growled in his stomach and he couldn't help but stare longingly at the tantalizing flame.

"You can make a new fire once you consume this. Besides, even if you decide not to, I can just build another one," Lucy wiggled the branch, sending a small shower of red hot ashes from the tip of the torch.

The ashes glowed bright red as they burned through the snow, and Natsu swallowed reluctantly.

Once again, he was confused over Lucy's motivations over handing him this torch. She built it with the sole purpose of feeding him? Not to mention stoking a fire to life, which was impressive all by itself. Natsu hadn't thought her dainty little hands even knew how to do something that looked so labor intensive.

And here she was, just carelessly giving him the flame she had so carefully fought to cultivate?

"You really want to give me your fire?" He asked, his eyes practically locked on the fiery branch, "Why?"

Lucy stared at him in some surprise, "Because you need to eat?" She asked, confused why this was such a big deal for him, "And since you eat fire whenever you can I figured this would be a good thing?"

Natsu wrenched his eyes from the flames to Lucy and realized that she really didn't understand. She didn't understand the kind of gift it really was, or what it meant to give it to a dragon.

Maybe that meant she didn't have an ulterior motive?

There was a large part screaming at him that he was wrong. There was always an ulterior motive. It was the part of him that hated her, and intended to kill her as soon as the bond came undone. But a smaller, quieter, part of him remembered their previous conversations, and warily raised its head.

"You created that fire Lucy." He told her, his eyes intent on hers, "You built it when you have no fire magic. It's special. And you just want to let me eat it?"

He couldn't really help the incredulity that crept into his tone. It seemed ludicrous. But at least spelling it out for her like that had understanding dawn on her face. At least a little.

For her part, Lucy could practically feel the 'why?' from him as he spoke, and she eyed him back steadily, "Yes." She replied calmly, and her expression gentled a little, "Just...think of it as a different kind of cooking okay? It serves the same purpose, and there's plenty of resources to make more."

Natsu's gaze followed the sweeping flame. He didn't understand her, but he supposed there was no harm in trying it out if she was offering.

He didn't sense any ulterior motives coming from her. Hesitantly, he reached out and grasped the torch. Natsu's eyes were intent on her, trying to sense any signs of deception in those large, brown eyes.

His fingers brushed against the open part of her palm. A small spark burst from the gentle contact, and Natsu felt the strange surge all the way up his arm.

Trying not to jolt backwards, Natsu just sank backwards to rest his weight onto his heels. He turned the torch over in his hand and without pause or ceremony, he sank his teeth into the flame.

It was delicious.

In seconds he was hungrily gobbling up the flame, happy over how hot Lucy had stoked it.

Once he was finished, he gave the empty fire pit a look, and reignited it. There wasn't much he could do to stave off the cold weather, but at the very least he could at least repay her for the flame.

It would leave a bad taste in his mouth if he just left it at that.

Lucy smiled gratefully at him and began rummaging around in the pack for something to cook, unaware that they were being watched.

Just beyond the tree line crouched a burly figure, cloaked in shadows and with long hair tied away from a severe looking face. It fell down his back in heavy locks, a headband keeping his bangs from falling into his eyes.

Their watcher was intrigued by what he was witnessing. The fire brat was keeping company with a human and not actively trying to kill her. That was quite a development from the last he'd heard. Maybe blondie was the one it was rumored Natsu had been bound to?

There was a high probability of that.

Though he was more curious about what they were doing, and how they'd gotten here. He'd stumbled across them by pure chance while he was patrolling his territory, not trusting those scaled bastards from the brat's old nest to honor the boundary.

They'd attempted to raid his territory before. More than once. They'd thought he would be easy to defeat because of his background. They'd eventually learned that he was a drake in his own right, and not to be trifled with.

Ordinarily, seeing them so close to breaching it themselves would have him snarling a challenge at Natsu. But seeing him with a human girl had him curious. What was he playing at? And why would he bring the girl into _this_ area?

It didn't make sense given Natsu's legendary hatred of his old nest.

A hatred he well understood.

Unfortunately, he wasn't getting his answers staying where he was and listening in on them. It looked like he'd have to approach them. He grinned toothily as he leapt off the branch he'd been perched on and began closing in, though not directly. He was curious about the woman, and wanted to see what he could find out before he strode into their crude camp.

So he stopped just out of Natsu's range, moving through the forests with shadowy grace. As such he was able to skitter flat across the ground, as if he wasn't even there.

"So that dragon back there. Motherglare," Lucy hesitated, her eyes lifting up to Natsu from her bag. The dragon opposite of her stopped where he was chewing on a strip of dried jerky.

She watched him go rigid, almost as if every line in his body were being carved from stone itself from her words. As much as Lucy didn't want to start up another argument between them, she couldn't help her curiosity.

It burned at her to know the confused story behind Natsu. What exactly was he?

"What about her?" Natsu asked, his posture trying to mimic someone who was relaxed, but the way the still-smoking branch in his hand was cracking...

He was far from it.

Lucy absently plucked a stem from the wooded floor, twirling it between her index and thumb. She stared at it for a moment, running the pad of her finger against the frosted leaves.

"Just, she was so angry. And she hated you because you-"

Seeing her hesitating on her question, Natsu cut her off, tossing his feet forward and slouching down so his face tucked into his scarf.

"Because she thinks I'm not a real dragon," He growled at her arms folding over his chest. The branch was practically toothpicks in his fist now.

Lucy pulled her knees up to her chest, falling silent for a moment. She studied Natsu, and didn't press, counting down as she watched his body begin to uncoil again. She was beginning to understand his non-verbal language, and could tell when he was getting ready for a fight, or when his thoughts were turning inward.

After waiting it out a few more seconds, Lucy took a breath and asked a simple question.

"Are you?"

Never had Lucy seen someone's eyes snap to her so quickly in her life. His temper flared terribly in a flash, because he was on his feet. Shoulders and arms combusting, it seemed Lucy had accidentally pressed a very sensitive button. For a second, she forgot about the binding on him, and she remembered that Natsu was not a normal man.

But wasn't that part of her question?

So she held her ground, even when he had surged upright and towered over her, flames licking over his shoulders and creating wing-like shapes from his back.

Breathing hard, and glaring at her with eyes so dark, Lucy threatened to become swallowed by them, she choked back her caution.

"Are you?" She repeated.

This time, her simple question seemed to sink in through his skull..

He blinked, once, twice, three times.

The fires died down and slowly he hunched forward, this time so close to Lucy, she could feel the waves of warmth coming from his body. It did wonders to chase away the cold.

"Maybe," Natsu muttered reluctantly, his elbows dropping down onto his knees.

Lucy waited patiently, hoping maybe he would tell her more now that he was actually thinking about it, but he remained silent. His eyes distant as he stared into the fire, clearly seeing other times and places within it.

"Well you certainly look like a dragon in your other form." She murmured, something in her not wanting to speak too loudly with how heavy the air had gotten, and looked at him, "I just don't understand how you can be so many things."

Natsu looked at her for a moment, an expression she didn't recognize on his face, and frowned a little before returning his gaze to the fire, "I was born human." He replied, his voice so low she could barely hear it, and full of emotions she couldn't put names to.

His hands curled into fists, "I died when I was little." He continued, and this time there was no mistaking the pain in his voice. He chose to ignore the shocked look on Lucy's face over the idea that he'd _died_ and had obviously somehow been brought back to life, "But my big brother brought me back. As a demon."

Natsu bowed his head, resting his forehead on his hands. He wasn't sure why he was bothering to explain everything to her, but now that he'd started he couldn't seem to stop, and her shocked gasp spurred him on.

"Igneel found me not long after he did." He growled, the old pain and anger welling up, "He took me away. Brought me to the nest, and taught me dragon magic."

This time Lucy's eyes widened with understanding, "And it changed you." She murmured, "Into a dragon."

Jellal had explained how all magic affected the wizard wielding it. Sometimes the effects were subtle, sometimes they weren't. But all magic changed its user. That was why so few learned more than one kind of magic. And even those that did favored one over the other.

Natsu's head bobbed a little, "It happens to everyone who learns it."

Lucy stared at him quietly, "That must be hard. Balancing the three sides of yourself." She shook her head, "I can't even imagine having to do that." She offered him a small smile, even though he wasn't looking, "I'd say that does make you a real dragon though."

She shrugged a little, "Maybe you weren't born a dragon, but it's still part of who you are now."

Natsu stared at Lucy, unable to comprehend what she was saying.

She thought he was a dragon, even after finding out about the rest of him? Feeling a strange warmth running through him, he couldn't help but stare at her. Perhaps it was a bit on the bold side, but he was too surprised to care.

Not that he would any other time.

"That's it?" Natsu asked her, unable to believe she could just accept that at face value. No one could. Natsu was some weird hybrid that didn't belong anywhere. His family hadn't accepted him for what he was, the demons saw him as a traitor, and the humans were disgusted by him.

He refused to believe this one was any different. It was too good to be true, and Natsu had long ago learned to be suspicious.

Even if his instincts were telling him on the contrary, he wasn't inclined to believe them after being burned too many times in the past.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Lucy asked him, looking just as confused.

His jaw dropped down to the campfire ground, and he had to scoop it up. Waving a distracted hand, Natsu hedged into Lucy's personal space, "What's that supposed to mean?!"

"For dragons, their nest is _everything_ \- more precious than any hoard," Natsu snapped, "But they just-just pushed me out the moment my old man died like I was gutter trash! It didn't matter that I was family, they just-!"

He choked off, blood pounding into his cheeks and ears, deafening his senses into a dull roar as he remembered the snarling threats, the pain to his slashed throat when he was swarmed and pushed from his home. Natsu's fingers twitched around his scarf, his hand sliding up to rub at the thick scar across his neck.

It was hard to see, especially as his scarf hid it most of the time. But right now it ached with memories, and he could feel the sharp pain as if it was new. This place was too raw, dredging up old memories that had no purpose rising to the surface.

Lucy's eyes widened at the pain and distress on his face, and she couldn't help reaching out to wrap her arms around him.

It didn't matter that he didn't like her. It didn't matter that he'd tried to kill her, and might do so again if he ever got free. It didn't even matter that he drove her completely insane most of the time. What mattered was the shattered look on his face. The festering pain in his eyes.

What mattered was she understood it. At least a little.

"That wasn't your fault!" She whispered fiercely at him, her own eyes blazing in the firelight, "It was wrong, and they don't deserve to be forgiven, but it wasn't your fault! It was theirs."

"In my world we'd call them small minded bigots." She reached up to cup his face, a glint in her eyes that had Natsu pausing and biting back the sharp retort that was forming. It was the look of someone who knew.

It was a look he'd never expected to see, and didn't know what to do with. Had she faced things like this too? The thought seemed impossible. She wasn't a dragon. She didn't understand the concept of nest.

And yet...he couldn't shake the feeling that somehow, on some level, she really did know.

"I'm sorry it happened." Lucy continued, unaware of his thoughts, "Believe me. And I don't blame you for getting back at them. I really don't. If they're too ignorant to understand that this," She pressed a hand against his heart, "Is more important than your heritage then they had it coming."

She kept her eyes on his, "I know what it's like to do everything you can to get back at the people who won't accept you for who you are and not who they think you should be."

For the first time in his life, Natsu had no idea where to look. He often boldly stared at anyone. No matter the confrontation, he never backed down.

So why was he frozen now?

Lucy's hand, delicate and soft against his chest, might as well have been a hundred pound lead weight. It pressed into his lungs and crushed into his very heart. A gentle touch, so light -

It had to be a lie right?

Natsu had learned that hard lesson over centuries of life. It didn't matter what Natsu sacrificed or who he tried to protect, everyone eventually only saw the monster. The weird amalgamation of things which didn't belong. A mysterious creature that had no home.

But he was terrified to feel his heart sway.

He wanted to believe her.

She didn't have a home either?

Over time, he had stopped trying. He took his land, took his wealth, carved out his territory so people would leave him alone...

After he fought in the Celestial War - after he betrayed Zeref - his own flesh and blood brother.

It wasn't enough for anyone, they forgot what he did with Igneel and the others.

The tension drew out of Natsu slowly, his hand lifting to circle lightly around Lucy's wrist.

What made her different from the others?

"I tried to kill you," Natsu frowned at her.

"Yeah, I guess you did," Lucy was staring at where his hand was resting against her skin. A flush worked down the back of her neck at the feel of his grip on her.

His hands were rough, but gentle in how he held her wrist.

"That doesn't bother you?" Natsu murmured, confused and with an emotion he was having trouble recognizing thumping in his chest. He'd tried to kill her. He'd promised Leo he would kill her as soon as he got free from his bond. And though he hadn't actively thought about it for a while now, he hadn't retracted the statement either.

He was sure she had to know his intentions too.

So why was she defending him? Why was she doing what she was doing? He didn't understand.

Lucy sighed a little and met his gaze evenly, "It does." She told him honestly, "But not because you're a demon, dragon, or human. It bothers me because I don't want to die. And I never did anything to you, or anyone else, to deserve it."

Natsu felt something in his chest tighten and twist painfully at her quiet words. He'd never had anyone say anything like that to him, and didn't know how to respond to it.

It was a statement that shocked their silent shadow as well. And for similar reasons. Though he managed to keep his reaction contained. Unlike the firebug he was watching.

Lucy shrugged a little, "But even though you tried to kill me, and you probably still do, I've seen that you're not completely evil. You wouldn't have saved those girls in that fire if you were." She smiled at him, "So if you're not entirely evil then maybe I can show you humanity isn't either."

She smirked slightly, "It doesn't hurt that I really hate bigots."

Lucy watched him staring at her, his eyes dark. They bore into her like drills, trying to tear her apart with their intensity.

She relaxed the hold she had on him, and Natsu startled a bit when her touch withdrew. It seemed he had forgotten she had a hand against his warm skin.

He blinked several more times before shaking his head and scowling.

But despite the expression on his face, Natsu couldn't hide the rosy flush rising to his cheeks, or the sulky way his eyes pulled away.

His eyebrows twitched, furrowing.

Had Lucy known better, she would have thought perhaps Natsu felt remorse.

"Bigots, huh?" Natsu murmured. Lucy watched how his hands reflexively curled into his scarf.

Was it her imagination, or did it look less dirty and tattered than before? In fact, Lucy thought maybe there was a gleam of white scales under the layer of grime.

How odd, just earlier when they saw Motherglare it looked horrible.

There was a deep, heavy silence between them, but it was strange. For once it almost felt companionable between them. Not as dark and resentful as it had in the past.

Lucy decided just to enjoy it for the moment, and huddled closer into the fire. As such, she almost missed Natsu's next question.

"Why?"

At first she didn't know what it was for. But then she remembered what she had said earlier.

"Oh. Why I don't like bigots?" Lucy asked. She was genuinely surprised over his begrudging curiosity. Almost as if he was actually interested in her life before falling into this magical land.

He nodded at her, and there was a certain brightness to his eyes she hadn't noticed before.

Green.

The observation shocked her in the flickering light, as she noticed - for the first time.

His eyes were very green.

The revelation made her heart stutter in her chest for some reason, and he gave her a curious look when she took so long to respond.

"Did your brain fry or somethin' Lucy?" He asked, an eyebrow arching upwards into his hairline.

Lucy blushed a little, and nudged him, "No. I'm not the one that produces dragonfire at will." She smirked a little at him teasingly, and felt her heart flutter a little when he flashed her a smirk back that held simple amusement and none of the maliciousness she'd gotten used to.

It quite transformed his expression. She wondered if he realized that.

She relaxed a little, her own smile softening into something like what she used around Levy or Gray and stared into the fire, "I hate bigots because I've met too many of them." She murmured before he could say anything else.

She sighed, "My dad was one of those rags to riches stories." She explained, "He clawed his way from the bottom into a massive fortune before I was even born, and spent my whole life trying to make it bigger. We lived in a manor, had servants, all of that."

She clenched her fists a little at the memories, "And I hated it."

She forced herself to relax and rubbed her face tiredly, "It wasn't so bad before my mom died." She smiled a little at the memory and looked up at the stars, "We used to sit out when it was clear and she'd tell me stories about the stars. Especially the constellations."

Was it her imagination or did some of the stars seem to twinkle a little more when she said that?

She looked over at him, "It was a lot of fun. After she got sick we'd spend hours reading together about dragons and knights and fairy princesses." She shook her head, her expression sobering, "But then she died, and everything changed."

"I wasn't very old when it happened, but it was after that my dad became obsessed with me becoming a lady. He started sending me to exclusive private schools and hiring tutors to teach me how to be a rich snob." Her fists tightened a little again, "He didn't understand I didn't want to be that. And the kids I went to school with...they were all from old money. People who had been wealthy for generations. They thought I was beneath them because I wasn't like that."

She glanced at him, slightly amazed to find him seemingly captivated by her story, and couldn't help smiling a little at it, "It didn't help either that I was blond. In my world there's a stigma that blond people are stupid. I was constantly talked down to because of it, and it drove me crazy."

She shook her head, "At this point... I dunno. I guess maybe because I had to push back against everyone for so long I've just lost any patience I could ever have with narrow minded idiots who think they're better than everyone else."

Her life may have been different from Natsu's, but she still felt a certain measure of kinship with the dragon. Even if it was one he would be reluctant to admit to himself.

Lucy could see it. More importantly she could feel it.

His life was a mystery to her, but she had received certain clues into his mind which helped create a larger picture.

Being a part of someplace neither of them belonged?

They understood one another far too well in that regard.

Much of his life, she doubted would ever make sense to her. But that loneliness and isolation? That was something anyone could relate too.

Natsu had turned towards the fire, the expression on his face thoughtful. His head turned up to the stars, as if looking at them in depth for the first time in a long while.

He looked to be at a loss for words. Did miracles never cease? Lucy edged in closer to him, feeling the warmth from his body come at her like an inviting flame.

He gave her a curious look when she scooted in, but much to her surprise. He didn't pull away.

Instead he shrugged.

"Go to sleep Lucy. We have a lot of walking to do and I'm not going to carry your lazy ass the whole way," He grumbled and flopped over onto the hard ground.

Surrpised he had no comment on her story, Lucy stared at his pink head.

Not even a rude quip?

Was he thinking that hard about her childhood?

She supposed that was actually a good thing and lowered herself next to him.

Their shadow watched them settle in for the night with interest. That had been extremely enlightening. Far more so than he'd hoped he would get. Enlightening and surprising.

A full human who understood, in her own way, what it was like to be like him and the fire brat. He'd only met one other even vaguely like that in his life. And not even she'd known the truth of what he was. Though it was Lucy's comment about 'her world' that really sparked his interest. He knew the only way that was possible, and had never expected to see it again.

Most interesting indeed.

He pulled away, deciding he would approach them openly later. He needed to have a chat with someone before he decided what to do further anyway.

One thing was certain though... he would not be immediately chasing them out of his territory. He was interested now, and wanted a chance to talk with this human himself. He might even help. If for no other reason than to piss off the fire brat's old nest.

He knew that story perfectly well, and had no qualms about poking them in the eye. It was the one point he and the salamander were in perfect agreement on. They deserved every bit of misery that ever got laid on them.

Looking between the little fire brat and blondie, the dark man headed back into the shadows to slide back into the safety of his territory.

The last time he had seen Natsu, the fire dragon was filled with hatred that couldn't be hidden by any amount of mischief. The bitterness of being pushed out from your nest and abandoned.

Because a Dragon's life was long, but their memory even longer.

Once their mind was made up on something, it was almost impossible to change it. Especially with that stubborn mule, Natsu.

But there was a change in the wind, and he was willing to see where it took him.

* * *

 **HOLY SHIT GUYS. WE GOT ANOTHER FANART! THIS ONE IS BY THE AMAAAAZING _the-ultimate-anime-trash_ who DREW US LUCY FALLING THROUGH THE GATE! Chapter ONE SORCERRRRY! YOU CAN FIND IT HERE ON TUMBLR.  
**

mslead dot tumblr dot com backslash post/130600324212/whaaaaa-you-should-definitely-post-it

 **Also, it'll take more than a gate to crush through dragon scales. Motherglare wasn't in danger of being cut in half. Although I am GENUINELY surprised by how many of you guys were casually like 'cut da bitch'**

 **BUT SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! - the-clumsy-one - The-Rosette-Wolf - Mo0nyMoon - HalfBlackWolfDemon - Animallover** (who knows with Natsu, but he can't deny certain things about Lucy) - **Snavej - iamthewerepire** (I'm afraid you might have missed the other part of my answer. Wizards AND dragons are both very long lived. But dragon's aren't immortal either) - **KittyCrow12** (I won't lie, motherglare derpin' around like a turtle brings me great joy) - **Your Fan** (I'm glad we delivered :D) - **SakuraPetal01 - Guest** (no more tears,here is your chapter!) - **bluebirdeyes** (yeah his issues run preeeeetty deep in paranoia) - **DancesWithSeatbelts** (hope this added a little more flavor to them both) - **Wonderwomanbatmanfan - OgaxHilda - shvartzit** (cool! I saw those at a con the other day too!) - **Mechanical-Rose-Sama** (...did someone say Gajeel?) **\- sarara.18 - Poxxy - Etrinity - BakaFangirl -**

 **HazelDragonNora** (don't feel dumb! I would not recommend ALLLL of these books but definitely a lot of them. Some of them are very short too, like The Most Dangerous Game. Each book has special merit though, and each title corresponds in SOME way to the chapter it's about. )

 **CodenameMise** (omg I love you _and your money fufufufu_ ) - **Sara lovelymusic** (I... do not D8 sorry) - **kirby42280** (quite violent, arentcha?) - **Trollala.X** (I LOVE BONDING) - **Princessatj - Avengerika** (The ending will be unique to the story :D) - **Chouxes - Twishadowhunter - Compucles - Amelia Loves Anime - RokumonChan - oreobark - KirstyKakes - fanficlove2014** (Badass powers activate. Oh yes. Natsu laughed.) - **Ghost King's Queen** (You'll get your answers... eventually) - **eternalstarrlight** ( Oho! Look who snuck in at the eleventh hour! I won't lie, this is the chapter I've re-read like a hundred times. We'll mail you one ;D ) - **KawaiiPotatoSenpai** \- (THEN HERE IS AN UPDATE LUV)


	18. Call of the Wild

_**Just realized there are going to be 4 Acts to this fic. Trial By Fire is done now so... That happened.**_

* * *

 _ **18**_

 _ **Call of the Wild**_

 _"Bitter rage was his, but never blind rage. In passion to rend and destroy, he never forgot that his enemy was in like passion to rend and destroy."―_ Jack London, _**The Call of the Wild** _

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Morning dawned all too soon, a hefty yawn pulling from Natsu's throat as he shifted his weight and rolled his shoulders. After sleeping on the hard ground all night, he surprisingly didn't feel as stiff as he thought he would.

There was a curious warmth pressing against his side, huddled in close to escape the cold morning breeze. Cracking his eyes open, he quickly observed Lucy nestled in next to him.

Snoozing away without a single care in the world by the looks of it.

How rude, using him as her personal heater.

Still, he was reluctant to get up and start moving. Natsu told himself it was because Lucy would start groaning and being annoying again the moment he did.

But in actuality, he found he seemed to like the feel of her lightly pressing into him. For a second his mischievous side reared its head, the desire to jump upright and start roaring loudly just to scare her sprang to the forefront. It would be a hilarious prank! Especially so early in the morning!

But...

Her arm tightened around his middle, as if sensing the beginnings of his mischief.

She had held him similarly to this last night, when he had told her part of himself. The quiet portions of his life he kept to himself, sealed behind a stubborn tongue and bared fangs.

The portions she had coaxed it out of him so easily it was frightening. At the same time, though, it had felt strangely good to talk about it to someone. Someone who didn't offer empty platitudes or lecture him.

Someone who, more importantly, hadn't cared about the revelations. Not in the sense he was used to anyway. It was... strange.

Something warm thumped in his chest, his eyes drawing almost involuntarily to Lucy's face. Memories he hadn't thought of in years still raged within him with the tide of his powerful emotions. Emotions that had been provoked by sleeping blond.

Was it because he was in this shape? This form, so prone to bursts of passionate anger and emotion?

Ugh, this was why he preferred being all scaly and big. Then people with weirdly big hearts like Lucy couldn't pick their way under his skin. That just made his job to be a big, bad dragon all the harder.

It wasn't much later that Lucy began to stir. She didn't want to, but evil beams of sunlight reflecting off snow made it much brighter than it had any business being this early, and made it impossible to sleep in.

That didn't stop her from trying though.

She whined a little in the back of her throat and buried her face more firmly into her warm pillow only for a discordant thought to pluck at her. Since when did she have a warm pillow? There hadn't been one in the pack. Just the blanket. And shouldn't it be freezing anyway?

That was when she began to realize that her pillow was not only comfortable, and very warm, it was also firm, and smelled of fire and smoke, and was shaped suspiciously like a person. Probably the same one playing with the tips of her hair.

She lifted her head a little, blinking blearily, and managed to engage her brain enough to confirm she was, in fact, wrapped quite solidly around Natsu. And he was playing with her hair. Did he even know he was doing that?

Probably not. He'd be more likely to burn her hair than play with it if he was thinking about it.

The thought made her lips twitch into a smile and she yawned, "Hey."

He was giving her a strange look she couldn't decipher, but he didn't seem angry over the way she'd snuggled him. That was good. She didn't want an angry Natsu on her hands if she could avoid it. Especially first thing in the morning.

"Did you sleep good?" She half mumbled as she rubbed her eyes, and glanced around. Though she was disinclined to move away from him. It was cold and he was warm.

As such, her body was too lax and boneless to move away from his sturdy form. That, and it wasn't so bad having him mess with her hair. It was bound to be a rats nest anyway after having slept on the ground - and him.

It wasn't like he could make it worse.

Unless, of course, he set it on fire.

He rolled a shoulder and arched his back, stretching out enough to dislodge her. Natsu's hands curled into fists, but he relaxed a moment later, blinking sleepily at the sky.

"Yeah," He huffed and rolled out from under her, causing Lucy to squeak and scramble upright so she wouldn't land on his face. Natsu just favored her a confused, sleepy look over his shoulder as if he didn't understand why she was moving around so much.

Before he could ask her what was wrong though, Lucy saw his body stiffening.

Spine rigid and head turning up towards the sky, Natsu kicked out the fire pit they had built the night before and motioned for Lucy to hide in the trees.

All traces of exhaustion were gone as they grabbed their stuff and backed away. Natsu's arm caught Lucy and dragged her into a nearby snowbank, her body recoiling the moment it came in contact with the icy snow.

"Natsu wha-"

His rough hand came to clamp over her mouth, his own finger raised to his lips and he jabbed his finger upwards towards the sky.

She heard it then. The sound of wing beats. And more than one of them.

Lucy watched in horror as Mother Glare and no less than three other dragons appeared around a rocky bend. They were very firmly back in the mountains, even if the thick fir forest around them confirmed it was a different section of mountains. It made Lucy glad for the cover, but it also unnerved her with how close a quartet of _dragons_ had gotten without being seen.

As it was they could only see as much as they could thanks to being relatively near the clearing they'd camped out in. Which, now that she thought about it, probably wasn't great for their odds of being unseen.

However, before she could work up a proper level of terror, there was a new set of wingbeats coming from a different direction, and it didn't take long to see the source of those either. In fact, the enormous metal dragon landed heavily on a rocky outcrop not too far down from them.

She watched in shock as he, she assumed it was a he, reared up, spread his wings fully, and roared deafeningly at the top of his lungs.

She flinched at the level of noise and ducked down to cover her ears. That was officially worse than even Natsu's roaring, and _hurt_.

She was not surprised to feel the ground rattle under the vibration.

"You are dangerously close to trespassin'!" The dragon snarled, his voice a deep, menacing, tone that made Lucy shiver against Natsu, "The river is neutral territory! Stop where you are or face me!"

Mother Glare landed hard on the opposite side, roaring back at the metal dragon from across the dividing line. Natsu grit his jaw and secured an arm around Lucy.

His body was tense to run or fight, but she would be brought with him regardless of what he did. At the very least Natsu had to make sure she survived dragon country undamaged.

"Silence you whelp!" Mother Glare howled back into the wind, massive talons digging long trenches into the stone she perched upon.

"We are chasing the half-breed that dared to step foot back into our territory! You should find yourself so honored to even speak to a full blooded dragon such as I!"

Lucy started, her breath catching in her throat as she looked at the metal dragon growling before them.

Was he like Natsu?

"Stand aside Gajeel! They must have fled into your territory, and we will not let the unclean one go again now that he is vulnerable and powerless!" A jet of light began to burn at the back of her throat.

She rose up on her hindquarters, claws scraping at the sky and wings flapping in challenge. Lucy shrank back into Natsu's secure chest.

A low oath growled in her ear, coming from Natsu. She felt his lips drop down, his hot breath whispering to her.

"Follow me, quietly," He murmured.

Lucy nodded as the metal dragon, Gajeel, roared furiously again.

"I ain't goin' anywhere!" He snarled, furious at even the thought of submitting to that self-righteous lizard, "I don't give a damn who you're chasin', or if you're Draco's own daughter! You step one talon into my territory and I'll turn you and your drakeless nest into scrap!"

He smirked a little as the light glinted off Mother Glare's scales, "In fact, I dare ya to try it! I bet your scales would taste real good!" He bared his fangs in a dark grin and snapped his jaws eagerly, "Adamantine ain't easy to find, but it makes real good eatin'!"

"You think you can take me half blood whelp?!" Mother Glare roared in outrage, "I challenge you to come prove it!"

Gajeel's smirk widened, "Do I look dumb to you?" He retorted, "I ain't puttin' one claw out of my territory. You're gonna have to intrude on mine an' face the consequences."

Intruding into another dragon's territory without permission was a cause for war between nests if they wanted to take it that way. And while he was a nest of one, he was a drake, and none of them were. Further he was spoiling for a good fight. He just wasn't stupid enough to be the one to start things. If he did there was a distinct chance whatever allies they had might come winging in to support.

He was good, but he wasn't _that_ good.

However, it seemed he wouldn't have to. Mother Glare had clearly had enough of his impertinence and surged into the air with an enraged roar. Gajeel launched himself immediately after and cackled gleefully as she crossed the invisible barrier separating them and charged him.

Oh this was going to be good! He'd have to thank the fire brat for this

Maybe over his bloodied body after Gajeel gave him a good pounding for dragging him into his mess, but it was the thought which counted anyway.

He engaged Mother Glare, steel talons scraping deep gouges into her hind when he lifted his forearms to catch her. The two dragons crashed into the mountain with a deafening boom. Ground shaking under the force of the rolling dragons, all animals that were still awake or weren't hibernating, scattered for their lives.

Natsu, for his part, glanced over his shoulder at the struggling dragons and the other ones circling around, watching the fight with interest. His blood pounded with a natural excitement to see it unfold in its entirety, but he pulled his gaze away reluctantly.

He had to focus on getting Lucy across the frozen river without being spotted. Sprinting off to hide in Gajeel's territory wasn't the wisest of ideas, but it was better than hiding from a nest of dragons.

Besides, Natsu was certain he could at least hide from _one_ dragon. A nest of them though? His chances weren't that good. Natsu was sure that he could take Gajeel in a fight, even in this shape.

Probably.

Maybe.

Well maybe Lucy would help cow-tip Gajeel into another half-portal.

He took Lucy's hand and scooted across the ice, testing its thickness. He would have to hurry, since his natural body temperature could easily weaken it if he wasn't careful.

Lucy clung tightly to Natsu's hand as they slipped and slid across the ice, silently blessing Natsu's strength as it helped keep her steady while they moved.

Relatively.

It seemed that fire dragons alternated between being really good at crossing ice and sucking horribly at it.

Which was kind of impressive since, if she thought about it, she'd expected he would just suck at it thanks to his natural heat slicking everything down even more. A fact that, as soon as she thought it, had her nervously trying to move faster. The last thing she wanted was for him to accidentally melt through the ice. Aside from giving away they were there, which was something she didn't want to have happen at all, there was the rather unfortunate hazard of what would happen to them if he did.

Getting dunked into icy water and sucked who knew how far downstream under who knew how thick ice was not her idea of fun. Maybe Juvia wouldn't mind, but she sure would!

Mercifully, the dragons were all so distracted by the fight they weren't even looking in their direction, and the river wasn't that wide. They made it to the other side without much worse than a few bruises and some battered pride.

Gajeel, meanwhile, was having the time of his life. He'd managed to crawl onto Mother Glare's back, and had sunk his jaws into her scales, making her roar in pain as his teeth sliced through them like soft butter.

Of course, that was the signal for the others to wing in and interfere, but he just roared his laughter and blasted them with a point blank iron dragon roar.

Lucy cringed as Natsu dragged her behind a tree, a tinkling rain of metal shrapnel falling down around them. The radius from that attack had been enormous.

She found herself wedged against a tree and Natsu's body, the dragon mantling himself against her to keep the worst of it off her.

It wasn't the most comfortable of positions with Natsu's hot breath exhaling against the side of her face.

It tickled her neck and warmed her blood in the frigid air. Not that she was precisely cold anymore. No, the fear and adrenaline from the terrifying sight of two dragons locked in combat was more than enough to keep her flushed. But the sensation of Natsu hovering over her so closely left something else fluttering in her chest.

Natsu had one hand on her upper arm, while his right was bent over her head, elbow braced against the tree itself.

He wasn't looking at her though, instead staring up at the iron dragon overhead.

"Tch, show off," Natsu pouted.

Lucy gave him an incredulous look.

Don't tell her he actually wanted to transform and pick a fight with Gajeel himself? She peered at his eager gaze, and the intensity with which he watched the battle.

He did!

This battle hungry moron actually wanted to pick a fight with a dragon when he was tiny and stompable.

Much to her relief, and Natsu's disappointment though, the dragon's were soon driven off by Gajeel's roaring gusts of metal.

The dragon was dropping back down on the mountain, steel claws scratching into the stone like they were nothing. Red eyes glared at the retreating backs of those who had invaded his territory, and a roaring laugh burst from his throat. It was such an odd sound though, Lucy thought she imagined it.

"Gihi," He cackled, needle-sharp fangs baring into a deadly smile. His plated tail swung in a glimmering arc and twisted into the stone under his body.

"Come on out Salamander, girlie," He swung his massive head over in their direction, "You might be able to hide from Mother Glare and her hatchlings, but you can't hide from my nose."

Lucy squeaked a little and looked up only to find the dragon peering down at them with every evidence of amusement, "Um...he can smell us?" She asked, confused over how he could smell them, but the other dragons hadn't.

Of course her question went unanswered as Natsu seemed to take that as an invitation and pulled away from her to race over towards Gajeel only to crash face first into the barrier that popped up whenever he got out of Lucy's range. It was, naturally, just on the edge of the clearing where Gajeel was perched, so the metal dragon had a perfect view of his splat.

The big dragon stared incredulously at the sight for a moment before collapsing into roars of full bellied laughter. The rocks beneath him cracked ominously so he hastily began to shift down to avoid a rockslide, but that didn't stop him from being doubled over anyway.

Lucy's own eyes widened as he shrank before their eyes into a wild looking human. He was willing to shift into his human form?

That had to mean something. Though she couldn't tell for sure what exactly. Still, it gave her the courage to creep up to the edge of the clearing herself.

Something that had the unfortunate side effect of giving Natsu enough leeway to get close.

"You think something's funny metalhead?!" The fire dragon shouted challengingly, and Gajeel grinned wickedly back, not in the least intimidated by Natsu or his yelling.

"Yeah. Your face going splat." He cackled, "Your girlie's got you on a tight leash don't she Salamander?"

"Long enough to pound your face in you overgrown tacklebox!" Natsu shouted back at him, cramming himself into the other dragon's personal space.

"Oh yeah?" Gajeel ground his forehead back into Natsu's, both of them practically headbutting one another as they tried to force each other out of their space, "Haven't seen ya in this form in centuries! You think you can take me like this? Don't make me laugh!"

Lucy didn't know how it happened, but somehow right before her eyes, Gajeel and Natsu got into a fight. A fist fight filled with flailing limbs, biting, hair pulling, and...

"You little shit! You put snow down my pants!"

"Kyahahaha! I'm the winner!"

"Like hell you are!"

Lucy cleared her throat, just as she watched Gajeel yanking hard on one of Natsu's ears, while the fire dragon had his fingers in the other's mouth and was tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Uhm, do you two know one another?" She asked them.

It distracted both dragons long enough to pause in their scuffling, but they turned and looked at one another as a unit, and then turned in time back at Lucy.

"Sorta."

Lucy's confusion grew, though she really should be used to that, "Sorta?" She asked skeptically, and shook her head, "Okay, dragons are officially weird." She declared, "Because from over here it looks more like you two are related."

That rewarded her with two identical looks of absolute horror that had her biting her lip to keep from laughing at.

They sprang apart as if burned, "I'm not related to that jerk!" They shouted simultaneously, pointing their fingers at each other and waving for emphasis, only to turn and glare at each other again.

"Stop copying what I'm saying!"

"I'm not copying! You're the one copying!"

"Say that to my face!"

"I _am_ saying that to your face dumbass!"

And just like that they were back in each other's faces and wrestling again. Maybe they were siblings in a past life? Because they sure acted just like brothers from what Lucy could tell.

"So!" She exclaimed, capturing their attention again, though this time Gajeel was pinching Natsu's cheek and pulling while Natsu was tugging on his hair.

"Ah, your name is Gajeel right?" She continued, "I'm Lucy. I want to thank you for helping us out back there. Even if it was unintentionally."

Gajeel looked a tad surprised, but he scoffed a bit and folded his arms over his chest. He puffed himself up to his full height and gave Natsu a superior smirk, "Ha, 'twas nothin' - but if you really wanna show your appreciation, Salamander can get on his hands and knees to thank me as the Great Lord Gajeel."

His smirk was all sharp pointed teeth, and viciously wide. Those same red, gleaming eyes, peaked out at them as he gave Natsu a look that probably would have spelled a crispy end for most people, "After all, this lameo wouldn't have been able to do much to stop those dragons, even if he could transform."

"I'd rather chew glass," Natsu deadpanned and waved a hand to dismiss the thought of thanking him.

He laughed and raised his hands, shaking his head in amusement, "Besides, I can take you, human or not!" He gave Gajeel a dark grin, "Wanna find out what a demon can do metal mouth?"

The knuckle cracking which accompanied his dark threat did not put Lucy's mind at ease and she waved her hands to stop them from breaking out into a fight.

"Ugh! Natsu would it kill you to say thank you?" She demanded.

"Maybe. I know it'll hurt."

She walked over to him and shoved a hand on top of his head, shoving his head down to his chest. He complied, but Lucy figured it was more from surprise than any real desire to thank Gajeel.

"Thank you very much Mr. Dragon," Lucy hummed, "But we have a favor to ask of you."

Natsu blinked and turned his head at her, giving Lucy a look as if she had grown a second head.

"We do?"

"You do?" Gajeel repeated, now looking very interested.

It was clear on his face, he was thinking of what he would be able to hold over Natsu's head long into the future.

Lucy didn't seem concerned about that one bit. Instead she danced from one foot to the other, clearly nervous and very cold.

"Can you please give us a ride back to Magnolia? We got separated from our friends on the mountain and we sorta got lost in this place," Lucy babbled, looking at the stone-faced dragon, "They were going to meet us back at the guild if we got separated, but it's been a day now and they're probably worried!"

Gajeel's eyebrows rose towards his hairline. This was probably the last request he'd expected to hear. The only humans who had ever been bold enough to ask for things like that were... well, the ones like him and Natsu before they could transform on their own.

Yet apparently it didn't bother her at all. Either she was completely fearless, which wasn't out of the question when dealing with Natsu, or she was ignorant of the 'rules'. Possibly both.

Either way, it had him pausing as he considered her request. Magnolia was the center of Natsu's territory. No other dragon had seen it since he'd taken over the area, but everyone knew it was a prize with a great many elements in abundance. Who wouldn't want it?

To be invited in once, even if only temporarily, would make it easier for it to happen again. And if Natsu's condition turned out to be permanent there was no way he could properly defend it. Getting a chance to scout it would give him a leg up if he ever got the chance to fight for it.

And that didn't count the benefits of the humans that inhabited the area.

He might not personally care for humanity all that much, but as he well knew they were clever, industrious, and would surely welcome a dragon that wasn't inclined to terrorize them. Especially not for sport.

There was also that small wisp of a human he remembered…

A woman, which made him see mortals with more fondness than most dragons.

He still remembered her, and her soft, inviting, touch.

He sometimes wondered what ever had happened to her.

Besides, Gajeel preferred to fight against opponents that could fight back thank you very much, and he could probably get a fair share of that sparring with the local wizards. Another advantage for certain.

All of that ran through his mind in the few moments he took to think about it, and then smirked toothily at the blond, "Be glad to blondie."

Which of course prompted a snarl from Natsu. His expression blackened with territorial anger and he bared his fangs at Gajeel, "Back off Gajeel. Lucy may have me bound, but that's still my land. You cross into my territory and I won't need a reason to twist you into some ugly piece of lawn art."

The expression in his eyes clearly spoke volumes of what he knew Gajeel was planning. He cracked his knuckles in warning, eyes slanting furiously at the iron dragon.

"What," Gajeel smirked at Natsu mockingly, "I was just doin' Blondie over here a solid, especially since I don't hafta y'know."

"She ain't exactly wearin' stuff humans need to keep themselves cozy in this weather." The look he gave Natsu was evident that he knew Natsu couldn't refuse.

For his part, the fire dragon was pissed.

Pissed because he was right.

And there was nothing he could do.

It was shocking enough that Gajeel had actually agreed for them to ride him. Like he was some sort of steed for their convenience. Natsu would have never let anyone so much as touch his back spines, much less mount him for flight.

And Natsu hadn't ridden on a dragon's back since he was too inexperienced to transform. Igneel used to carry him wherever he needed to go...

"Come on Natsu, just this once?" Lucy pleaded at him, and gave him the most earth shattering, doe brown eyes he had ever seen in his life.

Cursing, he felt himself beginning to cave under her sweet stare.

"Ugh! Okay! Damnit!" He shouted and flung his hands into the air, "Just this once! So don't get any damn, clever ideas about poking around past your welcome!"'

Gajeel smirked triumphantly, thoroughly amused at how the mighty End had succumbed to blondie's puppy eyes. Did the Salamander even realize what he was doing?

Probably not.

He stepped back enough to transform without squashing either of them and shifted back into his dragon form. He settled down so they would have an easier time climbing aboard. Or the girl would anyway. Natsu would know how to crawl up without any problems already.

"Ready when you are." He purred, taking slightly sadistic enjoyment out of the glare Natsu shot him, and smirked when Lucy smiled happily and tentatively reached out to step up on his foreleg. He privately had to admire her courage to do that. There weren't many humans who would be brave enough to touch a dragon they'd just met. Maybe after a century or two of exposure, but they'd barely known each other for an hour.

It made him wonder what kind of dragon she might've been if she'd been trained.

He shook his head a little as he watched them get settled, Natsu holding tight to Lucy so she wouldn't fall and stood up. When that didn't dislodge either of them he spread his wings, "Hold on tight." He growled and took off.

* * *

 _ **ALRIGHT EVERYONE! We have another chapter of Parallels ready for you! Kytrin and I were talking about adjusting the update schedule. I just don't want to spam everyone with chapters of this fic and give people time to sit and really consume the chapter.**_

 _ **Sorry if I don't do my typical responses to your guys lovely reviews! I gotta finish my midterm project and I think you guys would have preferred the early chapter instead of my rambles**_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! -** Mo0nyMoon - Chouxes - KittyCrow12 - bluebirdeyes - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - shvartzit - the-clumsy-one - fanficlove2014 - kirby42280 - Musicality - KirstyKakes - sarara1.8 - Reaper3698 - The-Rosette-Wolf - Kotori-sama - Princessatj - Snavej - SakuraPetal91 - Animallover - Sara lovelymusic - Bakafangirl - HalfBlackWolfDemon - Twishadowhunter - Mechanical-Rose-Sama - oreobark - ThatOneExoticPotato - Avengerika - Amelia Loves Anime - Kitkat2883 - Poxxy - eternalstarrlight - Kaiyojin Kobayashi - AelithiaSienne - CaliTues - sunshine-melodi _


	19. West Side Story

**_I didn't know if this quote was in the book, but I am like ninety percent sure it's from the screenplay, but whatever I put both authors down._**

* * *

 ** _19_**

 ** _West Side Story_**

 _"Hold my hand and we are halfway there, hold my hand and I'll take you there. Somehow! Someday! Some... " -_ Ernest Lehman / Arthur Laurents

* * *

Frozen did not even begin to describe what Lucy was.

Sitting astride a metal dragon in a snowy climate was not helping to keep her even a little warm. She was certain her rear end was going to be frostbitten at this rate. Before they even landed back in Magnolia, she was going to have to get peeled from Gajeel's scales.

The wind blew hard and icy against her face, a ragged cough coming from her and attracting Natsu's curious attention.

As was usual, much to her everlasting frustration, Natsu looked unbothered by the weather and by the gusting winds around them. But she had to remind herself that he was used to flying in all kinds of weather. This sort of thing wouldn't even phase him.

"What, are you making those weird noises for?" Natsu demanded, staring at Lucy like she were some new species of spider.

"C-C-Cold," Lucy shot back, teeth chattering in the wind. At least her back was warm where it was pressing against Natsu's chest, and where one of his hands was settled on Gajeel's scaled back, just over one of her straddled legs.

"Seriously, still? I thought we were letting Gajeel into my territory to avoid the frostbite thing," Natsu rolled his eyes and gave her a dry look, "Man you really are hopeless, aren't ya lucy?"

"Alright fine," Natsu hummed, and Lucy almost shrieked in surprise when Natsu dropped his hands on her waist.

She found herself lifted up, off her secure position on Gajeel's back, while Natsu flipped her around. They were now face to face, his forehead brushing into hers and his hands burning into her thighs.

"Just ball yourself up nice and tight, I'll take care of the rest," Natsu snorted and dragged her into his chest. Her chin bumped into his collarbone, her nose pressing into the fabric of his scarf.

His arms were secure around her body, a warm embrace that had nothing to do with the heat latching onto her and seeping into her bones.

Slowly, she relaxed into his strong hold, her legs tucking up into her body as she trusted Natsu to hold onto her.

Natsu snorted a little as Lucy made herself comfortable, but gently tightened his grip on her as he warmed her up. After all, it would be a complete pain if she fell while he was preventing her from freezing solid. Assuming the metalhead even noticed, which was doubtful, there was no guarantee he'd catch them in time.

So it was better he hold her securely, and if that meant her nose was buried in his scarf close enough to tickle his neck then so what? It wasn't like he was enjoying the way she was curled so neatly against him. And he definitely didn't care about her soft breaths against his skin, or the way she smelled like strawberries and honey.

He pointedly ignored the way his heart thumped a little when she shifted against him, and his blood surged a little when she did. Just like he ignored how his fingers trailed over her more exposed arm, to keep it warm, or rubbed her hair a little for the same reason.

It didn't mean anything at all. He was sure of it.

That didn't stop him from jolting when a rumbling laugh from beneath their curled bodies vibrated through them.

"Salamander you better not be doing anything gross with that girlie up on my back," Gajeel growled warningly, "Don't you get too cozy there!"

Natsu nearly swallowed his goddamn tongue.

"Like that would happen!" Natsu's entire head burst into flame in embarrassment.

Gajeel's grumbling response of 'better not' - almost was snatched away by the wind, but Natsu managed to catch it with sharp ears.

His flames died down as Lucy squirmed with discomfort and gave him an equally embarrassed look. They resolutely turned and stared in different directions, both pretending not to acknowledge the weird topic Gajeel had even brought up.

Still, Natsu didn't let Lucy go, even as they flew into the more temperate climate of his territory. His grip loosened and he eased up the temperatures that had surrounding them.

He told himself it was just to keep her secure.

And she told herself that if she moved, her luck would more than likely have her topple sideways off Gajeel's back.

But there was something weird in the air between them. Like the beginning of a friendship. Something strange that had taken root between them without them even realizing it..

When the flight was finally over, and Gajeel was landing carefully in Fairy Tail's courtyard, Natsu nimbly leapt off his back, astonishing their gathering guildmates, and gently set Lucy down.

Her eyes met his as he did, and the weird thing between them seemed to swell for a moment before they were mobbed by the guild shouting their relief they were alright and demanding answers.

The distraction seemed to burst the weirdness Gajeel had managed to stir up, and it was back to business as normal. At least that was what it seemed like. However, Natsu couldn't quite shake the feeling of loss as he watched a sobbing Juvia half tackle and half drown Lucy in her relief.

"Guys! Really, we're fine!" Lucy laughed, holding up her hands, "We had a bit of a side adventure, but it's worked out really well."

"What happened Lucy?" Erza asked, equal parts worried and cautious, "The last thing Gray and I saw was a gate opening when you and Natsu fell."

Lucy nodded, "Yeah. I wasn't thinking and it opened up on its own." She grimaced, "We landed in Natsu's old nest, and ran into some trouble there, but we got away. Then, earlier this morning, Gajeel here helped us out when those dragons came hunting us and was nice enough to bring us back here." She smiled up at the big dragon in gratitude.

Gajeel just snorted and did a kind of all over shrug, "Wasn't gonna let you freeze with just Salamander's company." He rumbled, "That's just cruel."

He spread his wings to fly off again when a scent he'd never thought he'd smell again hit his nose. His eyes widened and he swung his head around, trying to pinpoint it. It couldn't be! That had been nearly fifty years ago! She should be a withered old hag by now!

But it was.

He spied her among the clustered humans near Lucy staring up at him with wide eyes. And just as beautiful as he remembered.

His heart thumped painfully in his chest as he folded his wings and shifted down into his human form, ignoring Natsu's growls and indignant demands over what he thought he was doing.

He strode over to her, ignoring all else, and grinned toothily at the petite vision before him, "Damn Shrimp. You ain't changed one bit!"

Levy's jaw slackened at the sight of the dragon transforming into the wild looking man, her eyes wide with disbelief. It was clear to anyone that his appearance like this before Levy was just as shocking to her as it was to him. If not more so.

"Gajeel you're-"

"A dragon?" He let out a gruff 'gihi' that had the hairs on the back of Natsu's neck stand up.

"Why didn't ya tell me you was a mage, huh?" He drawled. His long legs ate up the ground between him and Levy, and one heavy hand dropped onto her small head.

He patted it, "Damn, you're still as microscopic as ever, ain't ya?"

Levy quickly gathered herself and her cheeks puffed out, giving Gajeel's hand a swat from where it rested on her head and a swipe to his chest

"Cut that out!" She stamped a small foot and glared up at him. It only made his toothy grin grow.

"You're the one who didn't tell me you were a _dragon_!" She protested, jabbing an accusing finger into his chest.

Erza looked between them, wondering if their guild had room for two dragons in it. Especially with the way Natsu looked to be positively boiling in the background.

"You two know one another?" Erza asked Levy, her hands settling onto her hips.

Levy nodded, "Yeah, we met once, but it was a really long time ago. I got separated from my team in the mountains and came across a warm cave to take shelter in, Gajeel was already in there from the storm."

"I never thought I'd see him again after that... encounter," Levy's cheeks turned a telling shade of rose, and Natsu could be heard swearing profanely under his breath. However it was at such a volume he might as well have been shouting.

Mages could go decades with never meeting someone on their travels again. But thanks to their abnormally long life spans, fifty years really weren't all that much.

"I see." Erza replied, though there was a hint of amusement in her voice, "Well then, would you say he's likely to be friendly to us?"

Gajeel snorted and shot Erza a dry look, "I ain't interested in messin' up Levy's nest." He told her plainly. He wouldn't mind fighting them of course. But nothing beyond a regular spar now that he knew what they were to Levy.

She'd told him about her guild, in vague terms, while they were waiting out the storm that had blown up, and it had been easy to pick up on the fact she considered them nest. That was precious enough to him that he'd promised himself he wouldn't attack them as long as they didn't attack him first.

Of course, at the time, he'd laughed at the idea of them attacking him.

Now...well, now he wasn't sure he would win.

He'd never admit it, but Fairy Tail had done a fine job of keeping Salamander in line. If they could do that they were definitely people he did not want to antagonize into attacking him seriously.

Although there may be a way to avoid that. And piss off the Salamander at the same time.

His grin widened into something wholly wicked, a sure sign he was up to something, and he turned his attention back to Levy, "Come to think of it...I ain't doin' anything in particular right now. Any chance Fairy Tail has an openin'?"

There was a moment of complete and total silence before everyone, especially Natsu, exploded.

Gray was stripping, Erza was pulling her swords, Elfman screamed manly war-cries, Mirajane began to serve drinks at record speed, while Juvia went on the defensive.

Natsu for his part, planted his foot on a bench and rocketed towards Gajeel as a guild-wide fight broke out in anticipation of the dragon's reaction.

"You thieving catfish!" Natsu's roars came from a tangle of limb that comprised most of the guild. It was clear he wasn't even sure he was actually punching Gajeel or some unfortunate fool who had gotten in his way.

"GIHI! What're you gonna do about it Salamander!" Gajeel shouted back at him, "Not like ya can actually kick me out right now, can ya?"

"Ow Natsu, your elbow is in my kidney!"

"Then get your damn kidney off my elbow! I'm busy here!" Natsu snarled back at the voice.

 _"Get out you stupid dragon!"_ Natsu howled, nailing Gray under the chin with a loose knee.

That of course kicked the fight into high gear, as Gray's offense to the attack would not be so easily forgotten.

Levy gaped as the fight soon dragged everyone into it, and she timidly edged near Lucy, who was watching it with a bit of exhaustion.

"I think he'll fit right in," She admitted.

"The sad part is...you're probably right." Lucy sighed, and gave Levy an amused smile, "Something tells me he decided to ask to join purely to annoy Natsu."

And maybe stay close to Levy. But she wasn't going to say that here. With dragon hearing there was no telling what saying something like that might escalate this into. She was pretty sure the guild might not be left standing in the aftermath.

She hastily ducked as a stray bottle sailed in their direction and pulled Levy out of the way as it impacted.

"Damnit you punks! That was a bottle of the good stuff!" Cana shouted as the red liquid dripped down the wall to the floor.

A moment later she was pulling out her card magic, which seemed to signal everyone else to pull out their various forms of magic as well, "This can't be good." Lucy moaned, but at that moment Makarov had apparently decided he'd had enough as he grew suddenly to giant size.

"That's enough you brats!" He bellowed, smashing indiscriminately on the worst offenders, "If Gajeel wants to stay then it's my decision whether or not he can stay! Is that clear?"

Various moans and groans were his only answer, and Lucy shared a wry smile with Levy, "Master sure knows how to get his point across doesn't he?"

"Yeah, he does."

Natsu weaseled his way out from under Makarov's foot, eliciting a groan from Max, who he was using as a way to pull himself loose, "Like... hell... he... is"

He struggled out with each breath and then sprang to his feet, whirling on the guild master, "Magnolia is in my territory, and just him being in here a moment longer than I want him to is a violation of our ways. So keep your wrinkly ass outta it old man!"

Gajeel let out a 'tch' of displeasure, because he knew that if Natsu had his way, he wasn't technically wrong in that reasoning.

Makarov instead gave the two dragons a considering look and nodded, shrinking down in size and ignoring the murmuring of the guild.

He met Natsu's gaze and hummed, "Yes. I suppose that is right. Even in your form, you do have the ability to drive out a dragon if you put your mind to it, don't you?" He asked Natsu.

"However, if another dragon sniffed you out in your current state, one belonging to a nest - well I believe even you would have difficulty defending your territory from multiple dragons in your current shape," He folded his hands behind his back.

"If you want some random dragon, one not affiliated with the same guild you are a part of, invading, then go ahead. Chase Gajeel from your territory," Makarov gave him a steely look, one that had even Natsu pausing.

"But know that as you both would be members of Fairy tail, you two would be not be able to take from the other," Makarov's sharp gaze slid to Gajeel, who scowled at the ceiling.

That bit of detail genuinely surprised Natsu, and he gave Makarov a suspicious look.

"What, it sounds like you want me to retain control of this territory," Natsu gave the old man a searching glare.

Makarov only chuckled and smirked at Natsu in response, "Does it?" He asked

He shrugged and turned to head towards the bar where he began to climb onto it, swinging his tiny legs.

Once on, he let out a pleased huff and crossed his small arms.

"Better the devil you know, than the one you don't I suppose," Makarov smiled, "But the choice is yours Natsu. Will Gajeel leave or stay?"

Natsu huffed out, his eyes flashing over towards the stone-faced Gajeel, and then sliding almost involuntarily towards Lucy. She had her fingers folded together under her chin, a thoughtful expression on her face.

His gaze dropped towards Levy, who was biting her bottom lip and looking hopeful.

Ugh.

He wasn't an idiot.

He knew that the munchkin and rustbucket had some sort of relationship. He could pick up on enough context that they had shared a rather happy night together in their homey little cave while waiting out the storm. And whether it was fate, or something even stupider playing a part in bringing them together- ...

...Well he found himself reluctant to tear them apart.

His eyes dragged over to Lucy for another fleeting moment and he scoffed at Makarov.

"Whatever, he can stay I guess," He huffed.

Levy let out an excited squeal and wrapped her arms happily around Lucy. A sight that had Gajeel smirking even as he picked himself up and clumped over to where Mirajane was waiting with a bright smile and the guild stamp.

He presented his shoulder to her and tapped the spot he wanted, "Black." He rumbled, nearly purring with delight over the sensation of the magic sinking into his skin. The same magic Levy wore.

Natsu could keep his territory. He was getting free use of it now anyway. He had his eyes on a much better treasure now.

He paid no attention to the dark looks he was getting from at least two of his new guildmates. Not that he would've cared anyway.

Lucy, meanwhile, made her way to Natsu's side and curled her hand around his arm, "That was really nice of you." She murmured with a smile, "Thank you."

Natsu's cheeks puffed out, "Yeah whatever. Gramps over there just made a couple of good points is all." He huffed, trying to ignore the surge of warmth that raced through him at her approval.

Lucy gave him an amused, almost knowing, look, "Sure." She agreed in a tone that said she didn't believe him at all, "Well, whatever your reason it made Levy happy. So thank you."

Natsu snorted again, but couldn't entirely hide the faint upturn his mouth was taking. So he buried his nose in his scarf, not noticing that it was starting to look a little less ragged than it had, "Can we get some food now?" He whined, "I'm starving."

"You're always hungry," Lucy grinned at him, setting a hand on his back between his shoulders to guide him towards the bar. He allowed himself to be steered, but he let out a surprising bark of amusement at her observation.

"What just because you eat like a bird?" Natsu scoffed.

"Do not!" She protested, pushing him down to sit next to Gray, who had managed to recover his pants at some point.

Natsu scooted his chair away from Gray and gave him a dirty look, but to Lucy's amazement, he didn't get up to walk away and give himself some more space from the other.

Natsu just turned towards her and childishly blew a raspberry, "Do too! Bet you can't beat me in an eating contest, cheep cheep!"

"No one can beat you in an eating contest!" Lucy gaped in horror at the very idea.

But of course...

The guild had ears.

And challengers.

"A real man would take you on! Come on dragon, let's see what you got!" Elfman slammed a mighty hand against the counter top with enough force to dislodge Gray.

The ice make wizard scoffed and rolled his eyes, ready to back away, when Juvia pushed him forward.

"Gray can defeat you both in eating combat! Isn't that right my love?" She smirked viciously at them over his shoulder.

Gray coughed and rolled his eyes at his wife in amusement, "Well... I guess I gotta try now. You both are going down!"

Natsu stared at the guild members who were gathering around for the impromptu eating contest he had only teasingly suggested to Lucy. He was shocked so many people were willing to challenge him. Idiots. All of them.

The corner of his lips tugged upwards as the competitive streak of fire surged to life in his chest.

"Oh yeah? Good luck! I'll destroy you both!" He cackled.

And then they were joined by the shadow of their newest member.

Gajeel stood next to them, his scarred arms crossed over his chest and a slasher smile splitting his face in half.

"Don't even think about it you puny weaklings, only a dragon can beat a dragon! Stand aside!" Gajeel roared with laughter and slammed down heavily in the seat next to Elfman.

"Oh yeah? Fine then, the more of you I get to embarrass, the better!"

"Laugh it up while you can Natsu!"

"Yeah, you're going to be rolling under this table, stuffed after we're done with you!" Elfman cracked his knuckles.

A grin tore free from Natsu's face, the first he had experienced in longer than he could remember, his eyes brightening with competitive spirit and the idea of smashing all of his challengers faces into their loss.

He blinked as Lucy was gently guided away and the armored form of Erza took her spot next to him. She smoothed out her skirt and placed a napkin daintily on her lap.

"If it is a battle of wills, then I will not lose," She proclaimed with a frightening air of calm. Her chin rose in challenge to the gathered men, portraying the air of a General riding into war.

And just like that, Natsu was not so sure of his victory.

* * *

 _ **Wow you guys are so nervous. I was talking about shaving a day OFF our update schedule, not making it longer. WAY TO JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS. Most of the reviews were panic over longer updates XD... Ultimately we decided to keep it the same for now just so updates don't get stacked.**_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL OUR REVIEWERS!**_ **KaUiA** (Oh, I have no idea what you mean) - **OgaxHilda** (It smells like VICTORY) - **Chouxes - Trollala.X** (WelP! Glad it made it better. That's a new one.) **\- Mezatron - Yuyui Hime - KirstyKakes - .3 - The-Rosette-Wolf** (JHC, don't pass out!) - **DancesWithSeatbelts** (kind wordsss) - **bluebirdeyes** (oh ya, kytrin snuck that one in during the editing process. I had to re-read the chapter to figure out what you were talking about) - **KittyCrow12 - Mo0nyMoon** (allow me to smother you in more fluff) - **Crash8573 - Pixelbow** (That's alright, do your homework! I'm glad you liked the chapter!) - **NonTimetisMessor** (I guess you'll have to find out) - **Snavej** (I'll keep that in mind for the future) **\- Wonderwomanbatmanfan - CaliTues** (Yeah we're developing the characters in different situations, so Gajeel gets to graduate from being an asshole. And man, I can't say I'm fond of the term 'whipped') - **HalfBlackWolfDemon - Avengerika** (Blows kisses) - **shvartzit** (I've answered this question in a previous chapter :D ) - **fusrodafus** (A chapter every day? That ain't gonna happen buddy hahaha, nice try though. Gotta respect the brass to ask) **\- the-clumsy-one** (That is an experience I would like or dislike depending on the time of year) - **KristiexxNguyen** (oh good! I'm glad you think so) - **fanficlove2014** (Gotta have us our nalu fufufu) - **NaluLuva23** (Yes. We must have a schedule, and no spamming chapters XD.) - **SakuraPetal91** (Don't scream yourself hoarse darlin) - **Poxxy** (Fear not, it won't change. And I'm glad you thought it was cute! He is a big softie even if he doesn't know it.) **\- Guest - Guest - Amelia Loves Anime** (Yes. Yes he was) - **Twishadowhunter** (always a pleasure) - **Animallover** (hahaha I hope this chapter satisfied you) - **Mechanical-Rose-Sama** (mayhaps) - **Little Red** (I am not sure I understand your question about Edolas. Who is another 'her?') - **ThatBrunnette** (Yes, _Parallels_ is a collab fic I write with my beta Kytrin. I write _What's a Witch_ on my own. I was also wrote Act 3 of another collab called _Trial by Fire_ with Snogfairy and Toxineena. Beauty and the Beast hm, maybeeee) - **ThatOneExoticPotato** (Sup bruh?) - **kirby42280** (Well here you are! with more excitement coming your way, I promise) - **Pineapple** (Fear not, update does not chance. We love Gajevy too, but they will not be a focused couple) - **eternalstarrlight** (I'm glad you like reading the rambles. Because I do it a lot. Hahaha, well everyone but Natsu sees it. And be patient, you will get some asskickery soon. And by soon I mean... eventually.)


	20. The Neverending Story

**_This title is funny for a hundred different reasons._**

* * *

 ** _20_**

 ** _The Neverending Story_**

 _"When it comes to controlling human beings there is no better instrument than lies. Because, you see, humans live by beliefs. And beliefs can be manipulated. The power to manipulate beliefs is the only thing that counts."_  
 _―_ Michael Ende _, **The Neverending Story**_

* * *

Lucy laughed quietly at the miserable face Natsu made as he rolled onto his swollen stomach on the cramped cot they had shoved into one side of their single room apartment. It was really all they could afford, but it was still rather nice even with his snoring.

Or whining as it were.

Erza, of course, had defeated him without mercy. For a moment, it had looked as if Natsu could even win, however, when Mirajane had pulled out the final course for their contest - strawberry cake, his fate was sealed.

"Cheaters," Natsu whimpered into his pillow.

Lucy sat at the narrow writing desk she bought second hand, a smile flashing over her face as she looked at Natsu's grumpy back. He was slowly dragging his blanket over his head, but seemed to struggle with it since it was caught under his sluggish body. He didn't seem able to get enough leverage up off his hips to get it higher than his waist, so eventually he just gave up and sagged back down on his springy mattress.

"Oh come on, you didn't stand a chance against Erza." Lucy smirked at him, "She's unstoppable when it comes to strawberry short cake. It's been said she has travelled long distances across Fiore just to fight a horde of Vulcans in strawberry-clad armor for their precious ingredients."

Natsu gave her a strange look over his shoulder.

"You inhale somethin' weird Lucy?" The expression was almost concerned, and Lucy realized the story probably did sound a little strange. She nearly swallowed her tongue as it struck her that her knowledge came from the extracurricular reading Natsu didn't know about.

"Ah, no!" She replied, a tad nervously, "Don't be silly Natsu!" She grinned as her mind latched onto the perfect explanation that didn't involve revealing her book, "I heard the story around the guild hall while you were busy picking fights with Gray and Elfman."

Natsu blinked, trying to recall when Lucy might've heard the story, but almost as quickly gave up the effort. He didn't pay attention to half the things that went on when he was picking a fight with Gray, and some of those guys were like a bunch of gossipy old women. They'd tell stories to anyone who looked interested, and from what he could tell Lucy never said no. Weirdo.

He shrugged and flopped back on his cot, "Whatever." He mumbled, and promptly whined as his stomach sent another jolt of pain through him. He hoped those other losers, especially Erza, were all suffering just as badly. Jerks.

Lucy shook her head, feeling a little sorry for him, and flipped off the overhead light so he could get to sleeping it off. That was about the only thing that would make him feel better at this point. And sure enough, no sooner had she done that than he began snoring. She shook her head a little and went back to writing in her journal. It was something she'd started up after settling into Magnolia, and honestly thought she would've gone insane by now without the outlet. As wonderful as her new friends were there were some things they just didn't understand, so talking to them wasn't an option. This was the perfect compromise.

Once she was done she stretched a little and glanced over at the now firmly passed out Natsu. He was unlikely to wake up before dawn, assuming he even did that. She had time for a little reading.

She grinned and tugged her book out of its secret hiding place, eager to re-read some of her favorite stories. However, when she pulled it into her lap she noticed that it seemed thicker than before. Frowning curiously, she flipped to the back, sure it was just a trick of the light or something.

It wasn't.

It took every ounce of willpower she had not to gasp and risk waking Natsu as she stared at the first few lines. Lines about _her_. Lines about going to Barnes and Noble, and finding the book she now held in her lap.

The book had updated? With her story?

She shoved it off her lap and scooted away, her heart pounding as she tried to figure out how she felt about this. Sure, she'd read everyone else's stories, but it took on a whole new meaning when she was reading about _herself_. Did she really want to read her own story like that?

The answer was, perhaps unsurprisingly, _yes_. She did.

As the shock receded, and her heart calmed, she realized she really was quite curious. She'd been so immersed in the situation at the time she hadn't been able to look at it objectively, and this would allow her to. Reading back over it could give her some insight to avoid problems in the future. More than that, she was curious about Natsu's side of it. And Leo's. They would surely be in there as well. Maybe she would get some insight on them. That could only help her out.

She smiled a little as she gently picked the book back up, and settled in to read the new chapters.

What had prompted such a change in the book? It was a curious mystery, but not one that kept her away from wanting to discover what new stories were written. Especially as she was a new and sudden addition.

Slinking back to her bed much as she had when she was a child, she curled into her covers and propped the book up onto its side so she could read comfortably.

 _Lucy Heartfillia found herself not only in a new world, but new dangers as well. She came from beyond the gates, in the Land without Magic and thus did not know the strange powers she possessed. Those were powers sought after by many dark mages, for it was the same magic the one they worshiped used long ago before the stars were chained to the skies._

 _None of that mattered when she found her fate magically tied to the very dragon who waged war against the fairies._

 _He was as his reputation suggested. Cruel, childish in his anger, and violent. But Lucy was a woman of noble birth, and as such she dealt with the dragon with a patient and kind hand._

Lucy snorted.

How generous of the book.

 _The actions of Lucy frustrated the dragon, who finally revealed his name to her as 'Natsu.' No matter what he did to intimidate her, she remained steadfast in her morals. Despite his plans to kill her at the earliest opportunity, the seeds of curiosity began to form in the evil dragon's mind, and it gave way to a path of uncertainty._

 _Natsu took care to watch her carefully through their journey. Adventures which lead them to join Fairy Tail. It was a decision which shocked Magnolia down to its core, and gave those who lived there the first sliver of hope in centuries. Could change be possible?_

 _The young Lucy did not seem to notice the ripples she caused by her presence alone, or the calming effect she began to have on Natsu._

 _He was aware of this effect though, and while he began to grow uncertain of his desire to kill her - he still watched her with deep suspicion. Natsu did not trust her, but not even he could deny he was beginning to grow accustomed to having her around._

 _After their journey to the mountains, they ran into a nest of Natsu's old family. The fire dragon could remember the claws digging into his throat as he listened to Mother Glare's snarls. The scar upon his neck remained a cruel reminder of how he had been turned away, still a hatchling to their ways. Each word burrowed further into his heart as he remembered how much he hated his human skin._

 _And why he hated at all._

 _It had been so long since he had been in his vulnerable form, the dragon had forgotten how violently he could be hurt like this. He wished to transform into the shape he was comfortable with, away from the shame of being who - what - he was._

Lucy swallowed, uncertainty burning in her chest. These words were private, just as they had been for the other guild members. Her eyes lifted across the room to where Natsu was snoring obliviously away on his cot, not a care in the world aside from a stomachache.

It was the first time she read words like this about him. Up until now, Natsu had never been shown in a way beyond that of a monster. Despite being a constant in the story, the dragon had never been named. His thoughts never penned.

This made him real.

It made him human.

Lucy glanced down at the pages, wondering how he would react to her entertaining a thought like that. She wondered if she should continue. It felt like it was a violation into his thoughts, but it showed her so many things about Natsu. Some, such as his desire to kill her, were not news to her.

But the fact it seemed to be lessening, was.

Guilt twitched at the fingers resting on the pages, her eyes flashing up to Natsu's sleeping form.

He was sulky and a brat, but the words she read on the page - even if he had shared a bit of his past to her himself, were heartwrenching.

Was he okay?

The sudden thought of not knowing, made her decision for her. Natsu would never tell her if there was something wrong with him, it was clear on the pages themselves. He didn't trust her, and even if he did, he was too proud to admit it.

Returning to the book, she quickly devoured the unfolding story.

By the time she was done her eyes were burning with the effort to stay awake. She'd read, and re-read, the story half a dozen times. She hadn't wanted to miss even a single nuance, and had gone back over every moment she'd had with Natsu over the past weeks looking for hints of what the story had told her was happening.

She still wasn't sure she would trust him exactly, at least not without the bond, but it made her feel better to know that perhaps he didn't hate her as much as he kept saying he did.

She managed to slip the book back into its hiding place, unwilling to risk falling asleep with it in her hands for Natsu to find, and curled up back in bed.

However, despite her exhaustion, Lucy couldn't quite bring herself to sleep yet. Even after several hours it was still a shocking revelation to see Natsu's perspective, and guilt surged through her again. Should she be reading this stuff? It really was private, and while the guildmembers who knew about it didn't mind it, Natsu was another matter entirely. He would probably hit the roof if he ever found out, and she wasn't sure she could blame him for it.

Still, it provided valuable insight into him. Insight she, frankly, needed. He was hardly going to provide such insight himself, and if things took a wrong turn and he decided he really did want to kill her again...well...a little forewarning might well save her life.

She sighed as her eyes began sliding closed of their own accord, and decided that for now she would keep reading their chapters. Maybe one day, possibly, she would be able to trust him enough to sit down and explain all of it.

Though she wasn't about to do that until she was confident he would _listen_ to what she had to say and not immediately jump to conclusions.

She just kind of hoped that day came sooner rather than later.

Lucy breathed out a heavy sigh, eyes opening to stare up at the ceiling, pulling her blanket up and under her chin. She felt the tension drain from her body, the words from the book floating back up into her mind.

Perhaps it wasn't foolish to hold out hope that one day soon he might be ready to hear about the book.

 _Natsu felt the first shock of hesitation when Lucy advanced against Mother Glare, defending him in a way no one had since his father died. Someone so small and fragile, against an opponent which could easily crush her hadn't given her pause. That wasn't to say she wasn't afraid, because Natsu could smell her fear easily._

 _Lucy had been so scared, but she defended him regardless. Something which, for the first time in centuries, almost made him want to trust her._

 _Natural suspicion caused him to believe every kind hand extended towards him would soon ball up into a fist to strike. Instincts for battle edged in him, waiting for the other proverbial shoe to drop. The moment Lucy stopped being the kind, caring woman she pretended she was._

 _But he could sense no deception from her, and his heart began to feel lighter._

 _Just as it had the first time he was able to fly with Igneel, warm under his father's wing._

 _Her strength, calm and inviting in its own strange way, picked at Natsu's caution. She convinced the Great Dragon of Black Steel to take them back home, unknowing of his plots to steal away Natsu's territory._

 _Still, when he held her next, sitting astride the metal dragon's powerful back, Natsu felt a strange sense of peace completely take over him._

 _Again he was in the air, and despite the rushing wind, the cold iron he was perched upon, Natsu felt quite warm with Lucy gathered in his arms._

 _It was strange…_

 _It was almost as if he truly wanted to believe her…_

Lucy sighed, knowing for whatever reason, Natsu couldn't bring himself to believe in her. But that was okay.

She wrapped her arms around herself, remembering the way his hands had felt gripping her safely to his chest. A flush began to work its way up her cheeks and she looked at the daisy print on her bedsheets.

She would just prove it to him.

* * *

 _ **Sorry guys! Short chapter this time around!**_ I promise the next one is longer! I'll try to answer your questions! 50 reviews for this past chapter! Excuse me while **_I go pass out_**.

I also want to give a special shout out for **the-ultimate-anime-trash** for drawing us FANAAAAART! EXCUSE ME WHILE I GO FOAM AT THE MOUTH. I really need to start posting links in my profile. I'll start doing that when I wake up from having dropped down into a coma. You can find it at the-ultimate-anime-trash **X** tumblr **X** com/post/131049773415/the-brighter-his-scarf-gets-in-parallels-the-more ! Just replace the X's with periods!

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED!** \- _**Jiryuu no Megami - Guest - Sara lovelymusic - bluebirdeyes** (Yeah, Kytrin and I love dragons as dragons) **\- Cora-DragonSou** l (Omg I sometimes do that too while at work) - **Little Red** (Yes we have seen Edolas. It would've been rather strange to mention END and Zeref had we not gotten that far. There is no Edo!Lucy in this or Edo!Natsu) - **Chouxes - sammydalammy** (just wait, you're gonna need to buckle in for a fun ride) - **Snavej** (WHATEVER WOULD GIVE YOU THAT IDEA? You should totally trust us. Especially me. The person named 'mslead' ) - **OgaxHilda** (You'll get even more fluff soon to drown in) - **Mo0nyMoon** (Oh there will be plenty of steam in this fic, and action, and fluff) - **shvartzit - Avengerika** (Yes we're focused on pushing the characters forward) **\- BakaFangirl** (I'm glad you enjyoed it, just be careful of the fluff. It gets stuck in the carpet) - **Guest** (hahaha friendship feels. Yep. That's FT ok) **\- NaluLuva23 - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - sunshine-melodi - fanficlove201** 4 (Yes, Natsu is slowly emerging as the character we've all come to know.) - **HalfBlackWolfDemon - Intangibly Yours - silver light of dawn** (Yeah we hit that GaLe like a 2x4 to the face. The eating contest was definitely inspired by that) **\- Dakota X Hoax** (I'm glad you love it so much! HEre's an update!) - **KirstyKakes - - AJ Drakes** (That's okay! You left a review for us now! Thanks bunches!) - **Pixelbow** (Hahaha ya, there was definitely a lot of fun in this chapter) - **Liz - sarara1.8 - Guest - Twishadowhunter - ThatOneExoticPotato** (NO I DON'T?! I'M SORRY. SHOULD I? SHIT. DO I KNOW YOU? I'M PARANOID NOW.) - **RazenshiaSapphire1306** (Thank you for your kind words! We will continue because of comments like this) - **Animallover** (You know what, I think that's a cool idea too. Maybe Kytrin and I will write a GaLe oneshot over them meeting. Wonder if anyone would be interested in that. Stay tuned with dragons, and Natsu called Gajeel a 'catfish' because those are bottom feeders) - **Mechanical-Rose-Sama** (He is definitely a brat. But hopefully they will play nice) - **Amelia Loves Anime - the-clumsy-one - No1Bookworm - equastar - Yuyui Hime - KaUiA** (HAHAHAHAHAHAH THERE WILL BE PLENTY OF THAT. And yes, the scarf is very important) - **Poxxy - Guest - The-Rosette-Wolf** (Don't forget to breathe :D ) **\- Senna - Tyrande** 8 (Oh! Well thanks for dropping a review for us anyway! I know Kytrin and I are glad you will read this! As for the exceeds... stay tuned) - **Princessatj** (hahahah yes. The scarf is a thing) - **Dark-Angel-of-Wicked-Chaos17** (Ooooh you picked up on that!) - **Zaryin - eternalstarrlight** \- (Well I think you're just a LITTLE biased, now aren't you? Hahaha, and yeah. They are heading straight past friendship and into love. Although it'll take them a minute to get there! And MAN. YOU ALWAYS SNEAK IN right when I am about to post the chapter. HOW. DO YOU . DO THAT.)

See you guys in two days!


	21. The Wind in the Willows

**_Longer chapter guys. Seriously. Long._**

* * *

 ** _21_**

 ** _The Wind in the Willows_**

 _"He had got down to the bones of it, and they were fine and strong and simple."_

 _―_ Kenneth Grahame _, **The Wind in the Willows**_

* * *

The following morning Lucy stretched as the late morning sunlight filtered through the window. Surprisingly, Natsu was still snoring away on his cot and not prodding her awake or whining about food or any of the other annoying habits he tended to have.

She smiled a little and shook her head as she climbed out of bed. After the mess of the last couple days she figured they'd earned a day off, and thought maybe they could spend the afternoon shopping for a few things.

With that thought in mind she stumbled towards the bathroom, certain Natsu wouldn't hear her over his loud snoring, and climbed into the shower. Maybe when she was done she would surprise him with breakfast.

And surprise him she did.

Natsu groaned softly as the scent of bacon and pancakes cooking tickled his nose and cracked his eyes open blearily. Food?

He glanced around and found Lucy's bed had already been made, which meant the sizzling he heard was her in the kitchen making breakfast.

He blinked a little at that, startled that she was up before him as he rarely let himself relax enough to sleep so deeply around her. Still, it was a pleasant surprise. She hadn't done anything to him, like he would've expected from anyone else, and was making food.

It was enough to pull a grin from him as he hopped up and pulled his clothes on before padding into the cramped space to steal a bacon or five.

"Natsu!" Lucy protested as he snatched up a fistful and crammed it into his mouth without so much as a 'good morning.'

"Whaf?" Natsu asked innocently, his eyes wide and his teeth chomping loudly down on his pilfered treat.

"Don't eat so fast!" Lucy snagged his face between her hands and mushed his puffed out cheeks together in frustration, "You just got done being sick from stuffing your face last night! How are you able to even look at food?"

His head pulled out of her grasp, a little surprised by the brass in her to simply grab his face like that. Natsu gave her a huffy growl, but it was smothered some by his stuffed mouth.

So Lucy just rolled her eyes, unintimidated by him. As usual.

Not that he was even trying to frighten her. She really didn't seem to have the survival instincts to fear him like most people did. And after their little adventure in the snow together, he doubted she ever would.

Natsu had told her more about himself than anyone else. Sure, she understood why he hated the dragons, but it didn't make sense why he was beginning to tolerate her...

Her and the guild.

He had known the guild for a while. Alright, he could almost see his tolerance there. But humans as a whole, whether they were magical or not, weren't to be trusted.

Natsu knew that better than anyone. Especially the ones with magic.

But Lucy was just a stubborn mortal he supposed. Not attacking a sleeping dragon when she had the chance was good.

Perhaps he could afford to relax a little around her.

"What, you really think food can defeat me so easily?" Natsu scoffed and stuck his tongue out with his mouth full. Cackling at Lucy's disgusted expression, he walked over to the cooler and stuck his head in.

"Are we taking a job today?" He asked from within the device.

"Are you kidding?" Lucy asked in exasperation.

"What?" Natsu asked in confusion as he pulled his head out of the fridge, his mouth stuffed full of who knew what else, along with the milk and orange juice.

Well at least he was making himself useful. Assuming he didn't chug them down and not leave her any at least.

She rolled her eyes as she flipped the pancake almost expertly after all her recent practice at it, "Natsu, we just got back from two very hectic days. Let's take the day off and relax a little."

She smiled over her shoulder at him, "Erza and Gray were nice enough to give us most of the reward money for the job, so we have a little extra now. We could do some shopping for a few things we need around here and just relax."

She piled the freshest pancakes on the plate and turned around to hand it to him, she knew better than to waste the time getting the platter dirty by now, "C'mon it'll be fun!"

Natsu snorted a little at that idea as he took the plate, "Yeah, whatever." He huffed, rolling his own eyes, "You just want an excuse to go shopping and be lazy."

He flashed her a cheeky smirk, getting a perverse sort of thrill out of the dangerous look she was shooting him.

Lucy was so much fun to rile up.

"It's not being lazy!" She huffed, "It's relaxing!"

His smirk widened into a rather shark-like grin, "If you say so." He purred and neatly plucked the bit of bacon she threw at him in retaliation out of the air, "Thanks!" He grinned as he popped it into his mouth, cackling at her disgusted sigh.

He actually didn't mind too much. He wasn't really thrilled about the idea of mingling with the townsfolk, but there were probably worse ways to spend the day. And if he whined enough she would stop for food.

That _was_ one thing humans did right. They sure could cook.

Of course that meant Lucy would probably try and get him to hold her bags for her while she went shopping. He wasn't too thrilled about that, especially since he didn't see the point in paying for things when she could just use her magic to take what she wanted.

But she raised a stink whenever he tried and it really wasn't worth the effort in the long run.

So after they both ate and got dressed, Natsu waiting absolutely _forever_ for Lucy to finish doing her hair and make up, they headed down the streets of Magnolia.

Natsu hadn't changed his simple clothes in centuries, and he wasn't about to start now. He liked the way the cobblestones of Magnolia felt against his bare feet or how the warm breeze fluttered around his vest and scarf.

His waist coat was more than enough coverage for him, and he even wore pants.

Really he didn't understand the fuss humans made while getting ready so he was ready to go almost from the moment he woke up.

Of course it did leave for some interesting days when he walked around the apartment in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist when it was time to wash his clothes.

His left ear was still a little numb from Lucy's horrified screaming.

She'd muttered something about borrowing a pair of sweats from Gray for instances like that, but Natsu had threatened to burn them to ash if anything of that bastard even came close to touching his body.

So wash day often saw Natsu banished into a corner like a half-naked, sulky child.

Natsu growled in satisfaction as the heat from the earth made its way through his body, warming his calves and sliding into his chest where he felt his internal flame crackle merrily. "So where to first?"

Lucy grinned as she looked around, "Hmmmm... we could really use some more food, but we can get that later." She smiled brightly as one of the magic shops that sold gate keys whenever they were available came into view, "Oh! Let's see if they've got any new keys!" She exclaimed excitedly and tugged on his arm.

She knew it wasn't good that the spirits were chained to their keys, but that was a problem she had no idea how to even begin to fix, so she left it alone as best she could and allowed herself to be happy that she might get the chance to meet another spirit.

Though... as expensive as the keys were it was debatable if she could afford one even if it was in stock.

Still... she could at least look. And maybe save towards it.

Natsu rolled his eyes dramatically, but gamely followed her in. He had to admit he was kind of interested. He'd only met a few spirits, and he was kind of curious about the ones Lucy might find. Not that he would ever admit that of course.

And so it went. The magic shop was followed by the bookshop. From there she dragged him into that stinky shop that always left him gagging where she bought her soap and stuff from. Then it was into half a dozen other places, some of which she got things in and some she didn't, before he put his foot down.

"C'mon Lucy!" He whined, "It's past lunchtime! I'm hungry! Let's stop and get some food!"

Lucy looked up from where she was peering into another window and cocked her head thoughtfully, "Yeah, I guess I'm getting kinda hungry too." She smiled, "And you've been a pretty good sport. You pick the place we eat okay?"

"Damn right I am," Natsu grumbled, somehow having managed to get saddled with half of Lucy's bags despite his protests and whining threats to set them ablaze.

Still, the idea of charcoal fires and barbecue brightened his spirits and he straightened eagerly, "Come on Lucy!" His stomach let out a hungry snarl and he began to walk down the street with a spring in his heels.

"Natsu! Wait for me!" Lucy called to him and raced after him. However she was nearly choked when something yanked hard on the strap of her purse and caused her to fall flat over onto her rear, "Ow!"

Natsu turned, raising an eyebrow at the sight of Lucy sprawled out on the ground, but his gaze lifted to see someone tugging her purse from her arm.

Lucy had all but abandoned her bags, but her position was a little awkward and she had fallen on her leg strangely when she was initially grabbed, "Get your grubby hands off my purse!" Lucy shrieked at the man.

There was no way she was going to let go. Not when her keys were inside the bag.

Luckily, or unlucky for the would-be mugger...

This interruption was preventing Natsu from a well deserved meal. And with the way Lucy was crumpled on the ground, that meant one thing.

She was _hurt_.

Raw anger churned through Natsu's blood, his magic burning and sparking just under his skin. Murderous intent rose in him, a small tremor shaking through him as he noticed the people simply backing away and avoiding looking directly at the scene Lucy made.

 _Cowards_.

The dragon marched over to where Lucy was keeping the mugger preoccupied, grabbed the back of the man's head and cracked it into the wall of a nearby business.

Lucy's eyes widened at the sight as she reclaimed her purse and started climbing back onto her feet. A less than delightful idea at the moment as it appeared she'd managed to twist her knee. It hurt just to move, but she had to get back up and quickly.

Natsu was annoyed and beating the crap out of the would be thief. His head was being dragged into the brick wall over and over and over again. The man was just lucky Natsu wasn't using his full strength.

"Natsu!" She called, her voice strained as she struggled to stand, "That's enough! You're going to kill him at this rate!"

And she was not going to allow that.

The growling dragon glanced over at her in disbelief, "Are you serious?" He exclaimed, "He tried to steal from you and you want me to let him go?"

Lucy shot him a half grin as she managed to get back onto her feet, "I didn't say that." She replied, grimacing as she limped towards him, "But there's a difference between holding him until the authorities get here and you killing him over it."

Natsu growled in annoyance, but lowered his fist anyway. It was dumb, but if Lucy wanted to do it the human way he'd play along. This whole thing was interrupting his lunch anyway, and Lucy probably needed some ice for that knee.

"You're wasting your breath girl." The man coughed, his face a mess of blood and bruises, "This monster doesn't give a damn about rules."

Natsu twitched.

"Says the man who tried to snatch my purse." Lucy replied acidly, "You're not exactly a paragon of virtue yourself pal."

"I don't think you get it ya dumb broad," He snapped back at her, not noticing how Natsu's body began to stiffen as he listened, "This is the dragon End, right? He's the same bastard that burned down the Magic Council, or don't you remember that shit storm he caused?"

Natsu rolled his eyes and lightly shook him from left to right, ignoring the man's pained groans or the way he grabbed Natsu's wrist with both hands and tried to pry his hand loose. Natsu's fingers didn't give, in fact the dragon didn't seem to notice his attempts.

But he smiled at the man, something icy to his grin, cold fire darkening his green eyes and remembered hatred and satisfaction coloring his face.

"Oh, yeah. The Magic Council. I remember them," He smirked at the man, his grip tightening on the man, drawing his hand forward to grind his cheek gently into the brick.

"They were bottom feeding humans, sorta like you," Natsu purred, "And I torched them like I'm going to burn you."

To hell with the human way. He was going to teach this insulting bastard a lesson he'd never forget. Assuming he survived learning it.

Fire licked to life around his shoulder, creeping down his arm like a snake, coiling further along.

Natsu could make his flames go fast or slow, but for now he was far more interested in seeing this scum's face as it slowly melted from his body.

At least he would have, had Lucy's hand gripped his forearm, causing the flame to puff out thanks to the bond.

He sighed in frustration and glared at her.

"Let him go Natsu." Lucy ordered, meeting his eyes, her face pale and mouth thin. Natsu scowled, mutinous.

"Lucy..." He growled a warning, but she matched him glare for glare.

"No Natsu," she snapped, her magic flaring to back the words, "You will release him now, and you will not touch him physically or magically unless he attacks us. Is that clear?"

Natsu's scowl deepened as he felt the bond ping, enforcing her orders.

She hadn't done this since Hargeon. She'd said something about how she didn't like using it to force him to do things if she could help it. Natsu felt a traitorous stab of disbelief and betrayal dig in his chest.

Apparently that didn't mean she was above using it when she was pushed too far.

He growled darkly, baring his fangs, and dropped the man, "Happy?" He snarled, his good mood gone.

However, she just nodded gravely, "Yes." She replied, "Though not for the reasons you might think." She met his eyes, and managed a faint half smile, "But if it makes you feel any better I think he peed himself. And I doubt he'll be stealing from anyone else again."

She nodded over to where he was being handcuffed by the local cops, or whatever they were called here, and squeezed his arm gently, "Not all crimes are severe enough to warrant death Natsu." She smirked slightly, "Especially not from criminals stupid enough to try and steal from a couple of Fairy Tail Wizards."

The last was said pointedly to the guy being handcuffed, and she was rewarded with a wince. It brought some satisfaction for her knee anyway.

She turned her attention back to Natsu, "Now, lunch?" She asked and grimaced as she put a little more weight on her hurt knee, "Or maybe a walking stick first."

Natsu gave her a look that was a little on the resentful side, clearly not so eager to forgive her over imposing her will over his that quickly. Still, his eyes flicked down to where her knee looked like it was bruising and he scowled.

"You gotta learn to use your magic to keep yourself from getting so banged up," He snatched her up and over a shoulder, bending down to scoop up all their bags and marched off.

"Argh great!" He complained angrily, "Now I'm stuck carrying everything and you!"

"Natsu, wait!" Lucy protested, but he wasn't listening, instead marching away down the streets and past the staring crowd that had gathered.

"Don't you want to get something to eat?" Lucy asked weakly from where she was dangling over his shoulder.

"Lost my appetite." He grunted back at her, just a hint of a snarl in his voice.

Great. He was mad.

Lucy sighed as they fell into an uncomfortable, heavy silence. She sagged down his muscular back, observing the tail of his grungy scarf.

After more silence dragged the atmosphere down between them and Natsu entered their apartment, clomping up the stairs non-too-gently, he dumped Lucy on the couch with her purse and all their bags.

"Ow! Hey you jerk!" Lucy snapped at him, not enjoying the rough treatment, "I'm not going to apologize for stopping you from killing a man, so stop acting like a brat about it!"

Natsu's eyes flashed towards her and he growled angrily. A muscle in his jaw twitched, and in seconds he had crossed the room and was advancing on Lucy. He bent forward, caging her in against the couch, his gaze intense on her.

"You said not all crimes are severe enough to warrant death, but that man stole from you. And he hurt you." Natsu snarled angrily at her.

"We were on a street crowded with humans, but I was the only one who stopped," He snapped, "Everyone else would have either watched him slam his boot in your face next to steal your purse or pretend they didn't see anything!"

"One crime or the next, it doesn't matter." He said in disgust, "He would have gladly seen you die had your positions been reversed."

"Maybe he would have." Lucy replied quietly, but her eyes met his just as intently, "And maybe everyone else in the street were cowards for letting it happen and not interfering. But that doesn't give us the right to mete out justice as we see fit! That's why laws exist."

Natsu stared at her for a moment and then pulled back a little to let out a bark of harsh laughter, "You think I give a fuck about their stupid laws?" He demanded, crowding back into her space, "I burned their precious magic council to ash!"

"That doesn't give you the right to do whatever you want Natsu!" Lucy retorted, unwilling to be intimidated by his posturing, and sighed, "Look. I don't know what your beef with the magic council was, but you were way out of line back there."

She met his gaze fiercely, "The fact that you stopped him from hurting me more, or actually stealing anything, was good. I didn't even care that you cracked his skull for it. But you had him subdued Natsu! He couldn't fight back, and you kept beating him. You were going to use your fire on him! That's like beating up Asca because she ran into you on accident!"

She pushed on his shoulders to get him out of her face, "I promised myself when I learned about my magic that I would not abuse it." She said fiercely, "And I will not be a party to you doing the same! I appreciate that you got mad because he hurt me. But there are other ways of dealing with things besides death!"

Natsu looked like he had gotten slapped and his eyes narrowed in displeasure, rolling upright and crossing his arms over his chest and sinking down, glaring across the room.

"That's totally different." Natsu's jaw clenched and gave Lucy a somewhat offended look, "I wouldn't hurt Asca. She's practically a baby."

"Subdued or not, he went after you because he thought you were an easy target." He grumbled

"Besides, why are you so certain your human laws will give out proper justice?" Natsu pouted at her, his anger beginning to lower more to a simmer than the blaze it had been.

Lucy made a sound of frustration and smacked the side of his head with a couch cushion, "I don't get why this is so hard for you to understand! Why are you so suspicious of it!"

She suspected in truth, it had something to do with the magic council. Natsu had even looked close to letting the man go before he had made the mistake of bringing them up.

Whatever their connection to him was, it had gotten a rise out of him.

Natsu gave her a stubborn look and she smacked him with the pillow again.

"Fine, don't tell me, but I'm not going to have you run out acting like some masked vigilante because a guy swipes a purse." Lucy sighed, exhausted by the conversation, "Just, will you please get me some ice for my knee? Or call Gray?"

The sound of disgust from Natsu was so profound, Lucy almost laughed. The dragon stood up so quickly to go to their cooler and collect ice it was almost comical. It seemed like he had forgotten how mad he was at her for the moment.

Anything to avoid calling Gray.

He returned a few minutes later with a bag of ice, already perspiring in his hot hands. He lifted her leg gently and wedged the cushion she had been using as a weapon underneath it. Gingerly he positioned the bag of ice on her swollen knee.

He was quiet as he worked, arranging the sagging bag of ice as carefully as he could. Mad though Natsu was, he couldn't really cause her injust pain and his thoughts looked like they were keeping him occupied.

"After the Celestial War, my dad got hurt badly." He said after a moment, "No one in my nest knew how to help him, so I went to a village the Magic Council was visiting for help. I knew they had wizards there, and I thought maybe one of them would have healing similar to that of a sky dragon."

"We used to know one, but she was a traveler, and we hadn't seen her for years." Natsu murmured.

"The council agreed to help me," Natsu met Lucy's eyes, "They seemed _happy_ to do it, and I was so relieved." His lips twitched down in disgust

Lucy's heart clenched tightly in her chest, and a cold chill that had nothing to do with the ice ran down her spine. Surely not? Surely the council hadn't done that? Surely they hadn't killed Igneel?

The very thought was horrifying.

She already knew that Natsu had just been a kid during the war, but had fought in it anyway, and that Igneel had died in it. Surely the magic council hadn't been so cruel as to kill Natsu's father?

However, the look on his face, one part bitterness, one part anger, and two parts grief told her otherwise.

"They didn't..." She whispered, needing to know for sure, and felt tears sting her eyes when he hunched his shoulders, and reluctantly nodded.

"They made him worse." He growled softly, and Lucy thought she could hear a restrained sob in his voice, "I never found out how, but..."

He closed his eyes and Lucy was moving before she realized what she was doing. Her heart cried out for her to do something to soothe this pain. If only a little. So she reached out and pulled him into a tight hug, ignoring both her knee and his startled protest.

"I'm sorry Natsu." She whispered, her own voice thick with emotion and knowing. Knowing of what it was like to lose a parent. Of the pain that never really left you completely.

"I'm so sorry." She buried her face into his scarf, unaware that she was getting it wet, "I don't blame you for hating them. I'd hate them too."

And she couldn't really blame him for hating humanity as a whole either. That didn't make what he did right, but at least she understood his motives now. She tightened her grip, silently grieving for the dragon she'd never met, but couldn't help respecting for what he'd tried so very hard to do for Natsu. And how much he'd obviously loved his son.

Natsu for his part grunted as Lucy held his head awkwardly against her shoulder, his forehead mashed into the back of the couch and his elbows bracing himself on the cushions.

He almost got whiplash trying to follow Lucy's emotional trail, his throat thick with anger and memories, remembered horror and grief causing a coat of sweat to break free.

They went from arguing with one another, to Lucy smacking him with a pillow, to suddenly hugging him.

Igneel had wanted dragons to be able to live alongside the humans. But the magic council hadn't wanted to take the risk. Natsu supposed, in some bitter part of his heart, he could understand their decision as leaders for their people. Not all of them had been in favor either.

Dragons had cooperated to fight in the Celestial War with the humans and spirits out of a common enemy. After Zeref's defeat, there was no need for dragons. Especially when they were too dangerous to even magical humans.

Most dragons saw humans as food.

"But Natsu, you can't attack humans the way you did to that mugger again." Lucy's voice murmured in his ear, disarming him with how sweet it was in his ear.

"Don't give people a reason to call you the monster you seem to think you are." Her fingers squeezed the back of his neck and buried into rosy locks. Natsu jolted a little, torn between the impulse of tearing himself from her hold or staying where he was.

Seeming to sense he was indecisive, Lucy's grip on Natsu tightened. Ignoring the throbbing in her knee, she pressed her cheek into his, "Try?"

Natsu hesitated for a long moment. He was a monster, and he didn't like humans. They'd killed Igneel. The mugger had hurt Lucy and tried to rob her.

"Why shouldn't I?" He asked, his question coming out more confused than angry, "I _am_ a monster. Why shouldn't I be what I am?"

Lucy pulled back to look him in the eye, and he noticed for the first time her eyes were wet. She'd been crying? Was it over what he'd told her about Igneel?

No one except him had ever done that before.

"I don't believe you really are." She replied, but laid a finger over his lips before he could open his mouth to protest, "But I know I could talk until I'm blue in the face and not convince you of that. Just like I know now that I could try and explain my reasons for not hurting people for hours and probably not get very far."

She smiled softly at him, though there was a glint of mischief lurking in her eyes, "So how about you do it for a different reason? How about you do it to spite them?"

Natsu blinked in confusion, "What?"

Lucy's smile turned into a grin, "They expect you to be the terrible monster right? And when you are you're proving them right. You're justifying all the terrible things they can say and do. So why not get back at them by proving them wrong?"

She shrugged, "That's what I did. And they say that the best revenge is a well lived life. So why not try it?"

"Sounds boring," Natsu complained, but his lips twitched traitorously against her fingertips.

"Good thing we get plenty of adventure in the guild," Lucy challenged back, her eyelashes fluttering in amusement.

Natsu reclined backwards, untangling Lucy from him and nudging her back with his knuckles against her shoulders.

"I'll think about it," He gave her a long, hard look.

He huffed and picked up the bag of ice which slipped off Lucy's leg.

"Now quit messin' with that." Natsu ordered, his eyes flashing back down at Lucy.

He rose, making to move off to the kitchen, when his arm was tugged backwards by a gentle hold.

"Natsu?" Lucy asked, her gaze lifting up to his.

"I'm sorry for ordering you, but I'm not sorry for stopping you," She said quietly, "I just regret that I had to at all..."

Natsu blinked, strangely appeased by her words, even while a wave of confusion passed over him.

He stared at her, long and hard enough to make her look away. His body relaxed and he sighed, nodding.

"Try not to do it again." He mumbled and grabbed the throw covering the back of the couch and dragged it down onto Lucy's face, partially covering her body.

He saw the way her body shivered thanks to the cold of the icepack, and even if he would never admit it, he sort of liked Lucy.

"Thanks." Lucy smiled, pulling the blanket off her head.

Seeing as she was apparently forgiven and the air between them relaxed, Lucy settled in on her couch, listening to the sounds of Natsu roaming around the kitchen to eat the remnants in their fridge.

Looks like his appetite returned after all.

Lucy let out a quiet laugh.

* * *

 _ **As usual our lovelies, we reached the end of another chapter! I hope you all enjoyed this one! It was pretty long! And we have an announcement. We will be posting a side oneshot centered around Gajevy and their initial meeting. We're 11 pages into it right now, so you can expect it pretty soon. You'll be getting a dual update with Parallels and this oneshot whenever it comes out!**_

 _ **Also, the exceeds are coming. Eventually.**_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEW! - DancesWithSeatbelts** (Well all your sweet words are carried with us!) - **shvartzit** (Hahaha, yeah I'm with you. If someone had a book that could just peek into my head? I'd either crawl into a hole or smack them) - **KittyCrow12** (Wait and see!) - **Twishadowhunter - Snavej** (Wise woman to trust us. *A terrible idea, really*) - (Oh yes, the slow build is done brick by brick.) **Animallover** (Erza would have won even if they hadn't used strawberry cake. And I guess news about the book will have to come into play later on) **Little Red** (The scarf has its own secrets) **OgaxHilda** (Trust goes both ways y'know. Can't blame Lucy for being cautious over a guy who has literally tried to kill her) **Celestialite - kirby42280 - Avengerika - HalfBlackWolfDemon - Mo0nyMoon - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Sara lovelymusic** (Slow burn baby, slow burn!) **fanficlove2014 - KirstyKakes - lovelyMali-Chan** (glad to be of service!) **ThatOneExoticPotato** (Oh yes! Well I hope you liked the chapter!) **Guest** (Muahahahahahaha) **CodenameMise - SakuraPetal91 - BakaFangirl - eternalstarrlight** (You have a sensor. Admit it. EVERYONE is worried about the book. Hahaha. Trust in usssss. **\- Princessatj - KaUiA** (That will be coming soon. I promise. Hahaha. Who knows how he'd react!) **wishyouweremedontya** (You are not alone my friend! I don't understand why Lisanna being in the fic would be a problem?) **Amelia Loves Anime** (Yes we have given Lucy a cheat sheet, haven't we? But the book only updates things which have already happened and provides insight into the past. Not the future. All it gives is an understanding.) **equastar** (*blows kisses* ) **the-clumsy-one - Dark Shining Light**_


	22. The Time Machine

**_Oh well crap. This one is long too._**

* * *

 ** _22_**

 ** _The Time Machine_**

 _"Face this world. Learn its ways, watch it, be careful of too hasty guesses at its meaning. In the end you will find clues to it all."_  
― H.G. Wells, _**The Time Machine**_

* * *

Lucy tried not to let her nerves show as she stood in front of Leo. This was their fifth gate building session since their job on Mt. Hakobe, and so far she'd managed to teleport herself and Natsu to several places other than her intended destination. Places that included Oak Town and Harjeon. Suffice to say, Jura had been pleased to see them, as had some of the other members of Lamia Scale, but it had still been embarrassing.

And she didn't even want to think about Oak Town.

She'd managed to gate them right into the middle of the guild there, Phantom Lord, and they'd proved, very abundantly, that not even all 'light' guilds were friendly. They'd taken one look at their guild marks had sparked derisive comments which had, very quickly, gotten Natsu's back up and the ensuing fight had been nothing short of devastating.

She counted her lucky stars that the guild didn't seem inclined to retaliate any, so far, and their strongest members weren't around. She just hoped Master Makarov was able to successfully smooth everything over with it being a training accident.

"Try to relax Lucy." Leo said soothingly, a calming smile on his face, "It's not a disaster if it doesn't work or you get it wrong. We have contingency plans in place, so you'll be fine. Just close your eyes and try to focus on the door you want to go through. Remember, it doesn't matter what it looks like. All you need is intent behind it. You have to feel where you want it to go, and feel it so completely that it can't help but take you there."

Lucy nodded and took a deep breath as she closed her eyes and started building the image in her mind. More often lately her door tended to look like the Fairy Tail guild hall door. It had become her representation of her gateway to the most happiness and excitement she'd felt since before her mother died.

And, truly, she was happy. Despite the dangers and the mishaps and everything else, she was genuinely happy here. She hadn't told anyone, but Earthland was rapidly becoming more of a home to her than Earth had ever been.

Leo, oblivious to her thoughts, smiled approvingly as the magic around her swelled, "Very good." He purred, "Now, try to imagine opening that door and finding yourself next to the gate to the guild."

Lucy nodded, and carefully reached out mentally to open the door. She stepped through just as carefully, and... screamed as she nearly walked off the bell tower.

It was a good thing Natsu was dragged through the gates with her wherever she went, because one tottering step later and he was lunging forward catch her by the back of her shirt before she could fall over.

He looked as if he was in the midst of having a heart attack by how fast his breathing was coming in. The gates made him a little travel sick, but they were so blessedly short they didn't last long enough to give his stomach more than an uncomfortable lurch.

"Ugh! Lucy, you suck at this!" Natsu protested, swinging his arm back to steady her onto the narrow ledge. They both flattened their backs against the wall and he gave her a heated glare, "You wanna try not to get us both dead at some point? It's getting really old!"

"It's not like I do it on purpose!" Lucy responded back hotly, but squeaked when the wind howled, "Okay lets just get down from here!"

Natsu leaned forward over the edge boldly, blinking as Lucy grabbed onto his shoulders to try and tug him back towards safety. He didn't even seem to notice after a moment, just giving her a curious look and then turning back towards the large drop down.

"We could jump?" He suggested.

"Not on your life!"

Natsu pouted when she dragged him back, his head thunking onto the wall behind him, "Don't be a chicken. I'll just hold onto you tight and drop down! You'll barely even feel it!"

He was tugged by the scarf again, pulling his face towards hers until their foreheads knocked together. Natsu grumbled and rubbed his head under his bangs, giving her a grumpy look.

"What do you mean by 'barely'?" Lucy demanded.

Natsu at least that the grace to look a little embarrassed. It seemed he hadn't intended on Lucy catching the slip of his tongue, "You'll be fine! Probably."

"Probably."

"Yep."

"No way."

"Aw, Lucy, come on…"

Lucy shook her head and glared into the pair of green eyes that were trying to do their best impression of a puppy dog, "Absolutely not. I'm not having you haul me over your shoulder and then just drop to the ground in the hopes we remain in one piece!"

Natsu threw his hands up, "Then our only other option is if you gate us out of here, because I'm sure as hell not seeing any stairs off this place!"

Opening her mouth to protest, Lucy promptly closed it when she realized he had a point. They had left Leo somewhere behind, and no doubt he was trying to figure out a way to get to them without accidentally knocking them off the ledge.

She didn't know how to open a gate that wouldn't lead them somewhere worse again.

Natsu huffed and flopped down on the ledge with far more daring than she felt he should be showing. Still, he didn't even seem to notice with the relaxed way his body sank, almost into the stone itself.

A hand propped itself onto his knee, his eyes turned outwards towards the horizon. His scarf fluttered in the air, scales catching the light and gleaming. Strange, Lucy remembered it used to be so much dirtier, but she never saw Natsu clean it.

Hesitantly, she sat down next to him, blinking when he raised a hand and steadied her arm for her to sit down next to him without having to turn away from where he was looking. Lucy hid a smile and watched him. Natsu was a little strange, but she liked him.

"Leo's lessons suck," He announced to her, flashing his gaze towards her and giving her a victorious grin, "You've spent so much time here, do you even remember what your world is like?"

Lucy blinked and she tugged on her sleeves as she thought about his question. Of course she remembered but… it wasn't the easiest to think about. The more she fell in love with this world, the harder she imagined it would be to go back to the one she came from.

"Yeah I remember what it's like," She admitted, "But it's nothing like this one."

Natsu's head tilted and his elbow rose to lightly nudge her arm. He gave her a wry smirk and his eyes glittered in amusement, "Bunch of weirdos like you wandering around? I knew it."

"Haha," Lucy response came dry, "You're hilarious, but no. There's no one quite like me in my world, that might be why it's hard for me to go back."

Natsu's curiosity burned into her and she smiled as a way of explanation, "I'm kind of an oddball there."

"You're weird here too," a lazy smirk flashed over his face and before she could get too offended by his off hand comment, he stretched his legs out in front of him, "but it's better than being boring."

Lucy's face softened and she relaxed, realizing that was his way of saying he liked all the strange things about her. Even if he struggled to admit such a thing.

Silence drew between them, the sun beginning to set heavily in the horizon. It sank over rooftops and began to spill the town of Magnolia with beautiful hues of gold and red. Lucy took a moment to admire it and remember how sunsets back in her world looked so similar to this one.

"At least some things don't change," Lucy grinned and at Natsu's questioning look she gestured towards their private show, "The sun rises and sets the exact same way - no matter where we are."

"Be kinda weird if it didn't!" Natsu raised an eyebrow at that. He snickered a little and eyed her curiously, "So what's different?"

"There's a lot," she admitted. Lucy thought for a moment, "Magic doesn't exist in my world for one. At least not like it does here. We have to do everything by science."

She giggled at Natsu's look of complete horror over the idea of not having magic in her world,

"Come on...it's not all that bad." She grinned, "We have a lot of really interesting inventions there, and can do things this world hasn't come up with yet."

Natsu cocked his head expectantly and Lucy groped for an example he would understand, "Like, for example, everyone can drive cars. They don't run on magic they run on gas, so everyone can use them." Her lips twitched, "You probably wouldn't like them though. The exhaust stinks even to my nose."

She pursed her lips a little, "There's other things too. For example, it seems we have an easier time printing books. They're mass produced in my world, and most of the ones here aren't." She smiled softly, "My favorite place to go was the bookstore. I actually have a collection that would rival Levy's. Except, you know, I have the space to store it."

She thought about visiting Barnes and Noble and other bookstores or libraries. About how at home she felt in them. Books were the friends she'd never had in her world, and while she wouldn't trade her new friends for them she had to admit she kind of missed them.

She shook her head a little and glanced at him, "I wish I could show you." She confessed, "I think you would like exploring my homeworld, even without the magic." She grinned, "I know you'd love trying the different things to eat!"

Natsu's expression brightened at the mention of food. It wasn't hard to convince him of something when the prospect of eating was involved.

Still, the idea that she wanted to show him her world was a little surprising and a trickle of something fuzzy wrapped itself in the gaps of his ribcage.

His first impulse was to brush it off in favor of saying something derisive. Probably something along the lines over her home world smelling as bad as she did. Only he didn't really think she smelled bad.

He sorta liked the way she smelled. Like honey and strawberries dipped in cream. Strange sugary confections that humans liked to eat. Natsu didn't have much of a sweet tooth himself, but the scent was still very nice.

His thought choked off at the root and he dropped his hands to the sides of the ledge, bracing himself there. Swinging his head towards Lucy and fixing her with an interested look, he rolled his shoulders.

"I'd want to see your world I think," He admitted to her.

Seeing the shocked look practically overtake her face, Natsu's cheeks burned. Sheepishly he looked away and grumbled to hide his rosy face.

Lucy smiled at the back of his head, amused at how the red crept over the back of his neck too. He was kinda adorable when he did that.

Biting back a tease that would probably ruin the moment, Lucy murmured, "I'd like that too."

She glanced down at the ground with a sigh when he didn't respond and only hunched his shoulders further down. Just like a child trying to act tough. It was cute, "Alright, let's see if I can build a gate to the ground."

Building her magic back up again was easy, but her mind wasn't really on getting them back to the ground. It kept flickering back to Natsu's admission, and every time it did a warm feeling suffused her. She really did want to take him to see it one day now. She could just imagine him enjoying traveling around different places with her, maybe even nausea free if she got some medicine for him, and trying local cuisines.

She'd traveled a lot before being landed here, purely for fun, but while she'd enjoyed herself there was no question travel was a lot more fun when you had someone to enjoy it with. Maybe she'd start local, and work her way out...it would be so much fun! And Levy would probably love to see it too. She would go nuts over the bookstore there. They might not get her out again.

Lucy smiled at the thought and, in a flash, just as she was visualizing opening the door to get them back to the ground, the image shifted to the Barnes and Noble door.

She squawked with surprise at the shift as she tumbled through, Natsu right beside her.

They did not reappear on the ground.

Natsu for his part felt something very strange pass straight through him the moment he tumbled through the gate after Lucy. He slammed forward and his chin dragged across some thin kind of carpet.

He groaned and set up, scowling furiously up at white lighting, blinding overhead in white tubes. There was strange humming all around him, and bright colors, washed out under the weird lights.

Natsu felt cold all of a sudden, his body's natural temperature dropping radically down in a way that made him feel almost sick. He groaned low in the back of his throat and pushed himself upright, blinking as he watched Lucy, who had landed on his back of all places, slide off and onto the carpet.

She looked around herself in shock, her jaw practically detaching itself and slamming onto the floor.

"Oh my god," She breathed out and grabbed a hold of his arm, giving him an body-shaking jerk, "Natsu! I'm back!"

"Back where?" Natsu groaned, rubbing a hand against his forehead.

Why did he feel so lousy all of a sudden?

"Back in my world!" Lucy hissed, trying not to be overheard, and moved over to help him up, "This is the bookstore I was telling you about!"

She frowned a little at Natsu's pale complexion and tugged on his arm, "C'mon. Let's get back to my place. You don't look so good." And getting sick here would mean a lot of attention, not to mention people possibly trying to call an ambulance or something if it was bad enough. Not something she wanted at all.

She steered him gently, but firmly, out the door, the look on his face alone enough to have people giving them a wide berth, and began guiding him back to her condo. With any luck nothing will have gone wrong while she was away, and the dust layer wouldn't be too thick.

Mercifully she didn't keep any pets, so she didn't have to worry about that at least. And all her bills were paid automatically. Odds were excellent that except for a big pile of mail no one would have even noticed she was gone.

How ironic that something that would've depressed her two months ago was now a relief.

At least it was still hot out. It seemed to help revive Natsu some. Though the look on his face when she led him out into the parking lot was absolutely priceless. It made her wish he wasn't sick and she had a camera so she could capture it properly.

Natsu went green as soon as he stepped foot outside, clapping a hand over his nose and mouth. His eyes watered and he looked around in bewilderment. The smog was thick in the air, but at least it was hot outside. That did leaps and bounds in making him feel better at the very least.

He grunted and waved a hand in front of his face to breathe past the exhaust no one seemed to notice and glanced at Lucy. What kind of badass lungs did she have to be able to inhale this shit in all the time?

He at least was a dragon. He could breathe this stuff in without worrying about it. But her? He wondered if he should give her a respirator. This stuff couldn't be good for her flimsy lungs.

Neither Natsu or Lucy noticed the shocked pair of eyes that followed them out of the Barnes and Noble. Or the way the man watching, ducked into the back room to make a phone call.

Natsu was too busy whipping his head around at everything that was going on around him, sensory overload imminent as he pointed around him at the strange inventions that didn't exist in his world.

And then a plane flew overhead and Natsu practically lost it.

He swore and grabbed onto Lucy, dragging her backwards into a bush.

"Lucy is that a dragon?" He hissed into her ear, "Why isn't it moving its wings? Is it _dead?_ "

His eyes went comically wide and Lucy stared back at Natsu, who looked like he was having trouble wrapping his brain around everything.

"Have your people managed to capture dragons and use their carcasses as transportation?" He sounded truly horrified.

Lucy gawked at him for a moment, and opened her mouth to tell him it was a plane not a dragon, when a sense of mischief slammed into her and she grinned wickedly. Here was the perfect chance for a little bit of payback for every time he laughed at her over the last couple months.

He still had his eyes glued to the sky, which was perfect, "Yes Natsu." She purred, trying very hard not to laugh, "That's exactly what we've done. Now behave yourself before I turn you into a carriage."

The horrified look Natsu was sending her proved to be too much for her composure and she dissolved into a fit of giggles, "C'mon." She told him, tugging him towards her condo again, "Let's get out of public."

He let her pull him along, though she could tell he was stuck between being horrified and angry over her answer, "They're not dragons." She sighed in an undertone, and shot him an amused look, "As far as I know dragons don't exist in my world. They're mechanical objects called planes."

Thankfully, while it was early in the day, it wasn't rush hour, so there weren't many people around to overhear her. Just as well. She didn't need someone being overly noisy and demanding to know why she was explaining planes to Natsu.

They probably already looked crazy enough.

The expression on Natsu's face crossed from confused to pouty in an instant the moment he realized Lucy had been teasing him. He huffed and blew a raspberry at her while they made the relatively short walk back to the condo.

A few more distractions interrupted the trip, but soon they were clomping into Lucy's condo.

There was a distinct smell around the house, as if no one had been in there for quite some time. Lucy tested a lightswitch and sighed in relief when her lamps flickered on. It was clear she was concerned there wouldn't be much in the way of power.

Natsu groaned and shivered, rubbing his hands over his arms. It was freezing!

He lifted his hands to his face and tried to breath fire over his fingertips, but stopped when he couldn't feel that strange tickle of magic in the back of his throat.

There were no flames, no heat - nothing.

That was right, he thought with dawning horror, there was no magic in this world!

Still, his strength and senses seemed to remain intact. But his active magic was all but gone. Natsu whined and swayed on his spot, "Lucy I'm cold!"

Lucy blinked at him in confusion, "What? You're never cold..." Her eyes widened as it suddenly hit her _why_ he was suddenly so cold. He didn't have access to his magic, so of course his flames wouldn't respond!

"Right, sit down." She pointed to the sofa and ran over to her linen closet to pull out some heavy blankets for him, turning up the air a little on the way. She'd almost forgotten the bliss that was air conditioning during her time in Earthland, and honestly was kind of cold herself.

She moved back to the sofa and wrapped the first comforter around his shoulders, "Here. Pile these up. That will help."

Thank god for being prepared for snow and ice storms.

She helped get him tucked into a cocoon as best she could, "Sorry." She murmured as she moved to rub her fingers through his hair soothingly, "I forgot all about the air conditioning. It's not something that's been invented in Earthland yet."

At least it shouldn't be as bad on his senses in here. Especially with the air purifiers running. Though they certainly didn't help the temperature any.

Natsu looked at her in confusion, "What's air conditioning?" He asked, wondering how you would even condition air. Was it like the stuff Lucy used on her hair?

Lucy smiled a little at him, "It's a mechanism for heating or cooling the air inside." She explained, "Something that's generally important with as far south as I live. And before you ask, no I can't turn the heat on right now. It might make things comfortable for you, but I'd bake and get sick."

She smiled at his pout, "I did turn it up some though so it won't be _as_ cold."

He grumbled a little over being coddled as he was and slid sideways down onto the couch cushions, buried in his blankets, "I'll get used to it."

From where Lucy stood, it sounded as if his voice was disembodied, coming only from the mounds of blankets. She laughed and reached over to him to mess with the pink spikes of hair that extended out of the folds by themselves.

"It probably doesn't help that you're not actually dressed right for my world," Lucy explained, "You'll be warmer if you wear a shirt that y'know... covers you."

His head poked out, just his eyes peering over the blanket and narrowing onto Lucy with skepticism, "What's wrong with the way I dress? I look _cool_."

Not having known Natsu to be a bit of a fashionista, Lucy choked a bit in amusement and tugged at his thin pants.

"No. Right now you look freezing. For one, you don't wear shoes. That can be a bit of a problem."

"So can burning rubber to the soles of my feet," he shot back with a smirk, "Next."

Lucy rolled her eyes, "At the moment you can't light a candle, let alone burn rubber into your soles." She pointed out, "So shoes won't be a problem for you."

She smirked back at him, "And who knows, maybe you'll like them. I'm sure steel toed combat boots would be just your thing."

"Besides that though, you need a shirt. Just wearing a vest doesn't cut it in my world, and can see you get kicked out of a lot of places. Just like no shoes." She eyed him for a moment and got up, "I have a decent idea of your size, so I'll go pick up a couple things for you to wear for now, and we can go shopping properly later okay?"

Natsu stared up at her blankly, "But Lucy, we can't afford that."

Lucy stared at him for a moment and then burst into laughter, "Oh Natsu!" She gasped, "I'm not poor in _this_ world!" She grinned, "In this world I have enough money I could practically buy Magnolia if I wanted to. Don't worry about it."

She ruffled his head, not noticing his growing shock as he mentally tallied just how wealthy that would make her, and grabbed her things, "I'll be back in about an hour okay? Try to get some sleep. The time shift between worlds is brutal."

Lucy huffed a little as she headed out, but did hurry her steps. She really didn't want to leave him alone for long, but also didn't want to deal with him being puke faced when he stepped outside until he was more used to the smog.

Not that she could talk. She was a little nauseated by it after so long breathing in Magnolia's clean air.

Thankfully, her car had managed to survive sitting around for a couple of months without any problem, and with it being mid-morning on a Tuesday, she had no problem getting to the mall for some shopping.

She quickly raided a couple of places for some generic jeans, underwear, and socks, hoping she got the sizes right when she did before making a beeline for a selection of t-shirts and anything else she thought Natsu might like.

She particularly hoped he would like the red dragon print shirt she grabbed, but unfortunately she was rushing a little so she kind of picked up whatever caught her eye and moved on.

No doubt there would be a few returns since she didn't have much to go on as far as his taste was concerned.

As much as she loved shopping, and had done her best to cram as much of it in as quickly as she could, she really didn't want to leave Natsu alone any longer than she had to. More than that though, she was quickly running out of steam herself. The time change really was brutal.

Chances were a good long nap would be in order once she got back.

By the time Lucy returned, heaving a bag over her shoulder and dragging in her haul of clothes back to the condo, it was getting later in the day.

She was about to nod off herself, when she made it into her house and locked the door behind her.

"Natsu?" She called out, checking the couch to see if he had done as she asked and taken a nap.

No such luck.

Of course not.

There was rummaging in her room, and Lucy dropped the bag in the hallway to see Natsu, still draped in his stolen comforters and rooting through the drawers in her dresser.

A pile of underwear was lying discarded on the floor, although he was looking at one pair with a certain expression of confusion and fascination.

"When would you even wear something like this?" Natsu asked no one in particular. He scratched his head with a blanket-covered hand, "When you're eating?"

"Definitely not!" Lucy shrieked and grabbed the edge of the blanket from him, ripping it sideways and off his shoulders.

Natsu stumbled in surprise and squawked, landing face first in the small pile of her lacy-undergarments. Lucy tried not to think about the injured pride she felt over how he didn't pay even a lick of attention to them.

"What was that for Lucy! Gimmie back my blanket!" He demanded.

"Excuse you, this is my blanket!" Lucy screeched back at him and pointed at the mess he made, "What were you thinking rooting through my drawers like some kind of pervert!"

Natsu's eyes were fixated on the blanket, a growl building in his chest as he watched it move just out of his grasp.

"I was bored, you were taking too long!" Natsu shot back at her before lunging for it. He pounced just like a cat would, managing to capture the edge between his hands.

"What're you so mad about?" Natsu asked her, smothering a jaw cracking yawn into the blanket. He had clearly struggled to stay awake, waiting for her to return, "Not like I found anything bad right?"

Lucy blinked as he leaned his shoulders against the foot of her bed, a quiet sigh escaping him and his face relaxing just a bit.

Damnit, why did he have to be so adorable when he looked like that? She was supposed to be mad at him for invading her privacy, not feeling all warm and fuzzy because he'd obviously stayed up waiting for her.

She sighed a little and nudged him a little, "That stuff is private Natsu." She tried to explain only to shake her head at his blank look, "C'mon...either crawl into bed, or let me show you what I got for you."

Natsu let out another jaw popping yawn and crawled into bed, tugging her with him, to her complete surprise, "Look later. Sleep now."

Lucy blushed as Natsu sleepily tried to snuggle close to her warmth and just barely managed to wriggle out of his grasp, "I'm not sleeping in this." She told him and grabbed some sleep clothes before heading into the bathroom to change.

She didn't even bother suggesting he sleep on the couch or anything. She knew nothing short of an earthquake would move him now, and she wasn't minded to give up her bed to him. Assuming he even let her.

They'd gotten used to sleeping in the same room and it would feel really strange to change that now.

She headed back to bed to discover he'd burrowed under the covers and to all appearances was already asleep.

She rolled her eyes a little and crawled in beside him. It wasn't the first time they'd done this and wouldn't be the last.

Sometimes when they went on jobs together, she'd scoot in close to his sleeping bag and he'd toss an arm over her to keep away the chill of the night. It made for a cozy sleeping arrangement when they were sleeping under the stars.

There was a certain kind of security Lucy felt whenever he pulled her to him. Whether it was in battle, or just popping up behind her at the guild. He was a makeshift sort of security blanket.

Which was very strange to think about considering his reputation.

He should have been the exact opposite. Natsu was the villainous dragon, not a charming prince after all.

Lucy's breath caught in her throat the moment she slid into bed with him. Not asleep as Lucy originally thought, Natsu's hand blindly reached out, sitting first on her thigh and sliding up her hip until it flattened against her stomach.

For Natsu, there was likely nothing intimate about the touch, but Lucy couldn't help the warm shudder that trembled through her at the feel of his rough palm against her bare skin. It was a sensation that surprised her, but she shook her head as the feeling faded.

He mumbled something sleepily into her hair in protest of her movements and tugged her backwards into his chest. His nose bumped downward to rest at the crook of her shoulder and neck, scooting in as close as possible to her.

He was cuddling her.

Had Lucy's heart not jumped straight upwards into her throat at the first, sleepy caresses to her thigh and hip, she would have laughed hysterically at the idea of Natsu snuggling with anything.

Perhaps she should consider getting him a cat?

Still, sleep was suddenly far too distant a thought. Natsu was curled around her back. He fit so well against her, Lucy had never felt so comfortable in the arms of a man before.

She blushed a little at the thought, but had neither the energy to pull her thoughts onto a different track, nor the inclination to pull away. It was nice snuggling up like this. It made her feel safe and protected, and right now that was far more important to her than his potentially distracting caresses.

Besides, it was comfortable, and as potentially embarrassing as it was, it was also a positive sign from Natsu. She would take as many of those as she could get. She might not know much about nest dynamics after all, but she could guess that snuggling was probably part of it. That Natsu would snuggle up with her, even unconsciously, had to be a good sign that something in him was healing.

So she did the only thing she really could under the circumstances. She settled in comfortably and let her eyes slide closed. It had been a very long day and she was more than ready for a few hours of sleep.

* * *

 _ **Oh man guys. Shit is officially getting real. ALSO. I will be illustrating an upcoming chapter soon. You'll be able to find it on tumblr when it's done. Probably. Also the GAJEVY oneshot turned into a twoshot.**_

 _ **THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED - OgaxHilda - Flame Ray - BlessYourStar21 - DraGonS3aL** (Yes. This story will definitely have lemons) **\- Little Red** (I answered this last chapter :D ) **\- shvartzit** (Ohoho, I can promise you, the last chapter was veeeery important) **\- Snavej** ( I think I mentioned in an earlier A/N that Wendy appears later) **\- Sara lovelymusic** (I think I got it!) **\- CrimsonLightKey** (I hope this nalu helped satisfy that itch just a little? :D ) **\- bluebirdeyes** (Bacon is like currency) **\- the-clumsy-one** (Oh it's easy to update fast when we have FIFTY CHAPTERS WRITTEN *dies* ) **\- equastar** (oh yes "understanding" ) **\- HalfBlackWolfDemon** (last time I checked we weren't!) **\- FairyAsia** (Maybe a lil' of both?) **\- Musicality - Angel T-chan Nekoi** (Hey, we had to break him down to build him up :D Oh we definitely saw the vampire Natsu! Hahaha, and I can promise you. Lord of the Rings will get a chapter. We're just saving it hohoho) **\- BakaFangirl** (Awww don't cry *rocks you* ) **\- Amelia Loves Anime** (Oh I'd definitely agree to why we study history.) **\- kirby42280 - SakuraPetal91 - Kaycha - AJ Drakes (** Reverse psychology is basically the only thing that would work on Natsu haha.) **\- Dark-Angel-of-Wicked-Chaos17 - Thalia24** (oh man, take the fic one step at a time! HAhah it's a marathon, not a sprint! Kytrin and I thank you!) **\- CurlyBookWriter94** (welcome to the den! We update once every two days so we hope you'll swing by again! **) - Guest** (The magic council just saw a threat to them that could be eliminated. Sucks for Igneel and Natsu though) **\- ThatOneExoticPotato** (THANK YOU FOR LIKING THE FICS! WE WORK HARD MY POTATO FRIEND) **\- emeraldlily56** (oh my god. You didn't. Yes, much of the conflict from this fic comes from Natsu's own emotional growth) **\- Guest - Twishadowhunter** (Oh man, yeah Natsu's protective desire over Lucy is definitely starting to make its appearence) - **Crash8573 - Glitter Spires** (Yes, we mean Asuka. Kytrin watches a different version of the show than I do, and the manga translates differently. So we just stick with one name and run with it. You'll see it when we get to Grandine as well.) **\- Avengerika** (Oh shit don't tell me I have to give you chest compressions. I hope you liked this chapter!) **\- re** (Well Trial by Fire was a different situation that was developed around those settings) **\- Wonderwomanbatmanfan - The-Rosette-Wolf** ( Oh I loved her new star dress! Thank you for the compliment and I am glad you like our updates!) **\- Ilulabelle** (Well don't worry! We update this fic a lot! So hopefully you don't have to wait long) **\- Animallover** (muahaha... we have plans. Yis. All the plans. The mugger just has some roadrash on his face hahaha ouch. Yeah we know about Asuka. Kytrin and I watch different versions and it's spelled Asca there. Naked sulky bby Natsu is my fave. Hahaha) **\- Princessatj** (Why would we kill anyone? We would never do such a thing. Just... a little death. A teensy bit.) **\- wishyouweremedontya** (Don't worry about it! I always encourage people to look at characters and situations with tolerance and patience. I understand how annoying that Lisanna trope can be, so there's no need to apologize! Omg. He knows how to read hahaha. ALSO. WE DID NOT PLAN THE GATE JUMP. YOU ARE PSYCHIC) - **Pixelbow (** I'm glad this still remains one of your favorites! *blows kisses* He definitely went overboard. He was basically going to torture the guy. Natsu and Lucy are cut from the same cloth, so their stories kind of parallel one another.) **\- Saracasim** (You'll find out C; ) **\- TrollalaX (** YES THIS IS A SLOW BURN. SUFFER WITH US. WE'RE WRITING THE DERN THING. Natsu's insecurities are things that have built up from being alone for hundreds of years. It's hard to just let go of all the bad stuff. He might start to trust Lucy, but that's it) **\- eternalstarrlight** (Oh yes. This is their married life. Definitely. Hahaha I kind of want to see Natsu as a half-naked sulky child myself. Natsu's an old dog, but he can be taught new tricks! Natsu is like a beansprout. Maybe even a sunflower as he evolves! ) _


	23. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

**_We're just spoiling you all, aren't we?_**

* * *

 ** _23_**

 ** _The Adventures of Tom Sawyer_**

 _"It gratified all the vicious vanity that was in him;"_

 _―_ Mark Twain, ** _The Adventures of Tom Sawyer_**

* * *

Natsu came back to consciousness slowly.

He was warm and very comfortably curled up on the nicest mattress he'd ever slept on with equally comfortable pillows and a warm blanket. So he was reluctant to leave sleep behind.

However, the more he fought it the more his brain began nagging at him with little things. Like it was a weird time of day for him to be waking up, and where was he anyway? Lucy's mattress was nice enough, but not like this.

As his mind woke up he realized he was also curled quite protectively around someone. That was enough to get him to open his eyes, and his gaze landed on a pile of messy blond hair resting next to him. Lucy. He was snuggled up to Lucy?

He blushed at the idea of him, him, snuggling up to anyone. It just wasn't something he did anymore! However, his attention was almost immediately pulled by the unfamiliar bed they were laying in.

He looked around, careful not to disturb Lucy's sleep lest she start yelling or kick him in the face or something, and it all suddenly came flooding back.

They were in Lucy's world. She'd somehow managed to screw up another gate and they'd landed in her magicless world. He remembered her getting him home through those stinky streets, and how frigid her house here was. And he remembered she'd left him here while she...

His eyes widened as wild excitement gripped him.

Shopping! She'd gone shopping for him to get him clothes he could wear in this world! She'd actually gone and gotten him stuff!

A wide grin split his face and he flung off the blankets and hopped out of bed, stars shining in his eyes. He just had to see what she'd gotten! She'd been gone forever! Surely she'd gotten some cool stuff right?

He started racing towards the door, leaving a confused and sleepy Lucy mumbling at the disruption to her sleep, when he screeched to a halt. He shouldn't go through his new stuff without her. She'd put effort into this. He should let her see how much he liked it.

His grin widened as he pounced back on the bed and tugged on Lucy's hand, "C'mon Luce! Wake up! You gotta show me the stuff you got for me!"

Natsu didn't even pause to consider how strange it was for him to act like this. He couldn't help it. Sure, he had stuff he had stolen and collected throughout the years, but he hadn't bought anything in a great while.

Much less had someone buy something for him.

Lucy was staring at him as if he set her curtains on fire - which he had in the past. But much to his displeasure, she was taking much too long to get ready.

Or hell, just moving.

He scooped her up, hauling the human's smaller body over his shoulder as he fled out of the room with a cackle.

"Natsu wait no!" Lucy cried out, reaching out blindly for something to hold onto, but only managing to hook her fingertips around the blanket.

It dragged uselessly behind Natsu while he carted Lucy with him.

The bag was quickly located at the end of the hall, and Lucy shrieked as her center of gravity shifted when Natsu suddenly sat down with her still on his shoulder.

She elbowed the back of his head in protest, getting him to loosen his grip enough for her to scuttle off him.

"You couldn't have waited until I was awake?" Lucy hissed at Natsu, snagging the blanket around herself protectively.

Natsu just tsk'd and grabbed the other end of the blanket, burrowing himself into the other side. He gave Lucy an unrepentant smile, unable to hide his excitement.

Lucy's heart jumped at the schoolboy smile, so alight with happiness she thought it would burst. It was an expression that looked so natural on him, something in Lucy's chest ached when she realized how often it was missing.

"You bought me something! I want to see what it is!" He declared, very much like a child on Christmas morning.

Lucy laughed, unable to resist, and shook her head with a smile, "Hold on another minute Natsu." She told him and climbed to her feet, glad that she wasn't in anything skimpy this time, "There's more in the car. I forgot to bring it in after I caught you going through my underwear."

She rolled her eyes a little, but couldn't help smiling as it appeared that if Natsu got any more eager he would be floating.

"Just wait there, and I'll be right back." She promised, grabbing her keys and heading outside.

She even left the door open so he could watch her getting stuff out, though she didn't really expect him to help her until she looked up and he was next to her relieving her of half her bags.

"Thanks." She murmured gratefully, and headed back in.

It was only once everything was settled that she realized she'd really gotten a _lot_. Much more than she'd really realized at the time.

Ah well. That just increased the odds he'd find _something_ in there he liked.

She grinned and shoved a green bag at him, "Well go on. Check it out! And remember, if you don't like any of it we can take it back and get something you do like instead."

Natsu stared at the bags, feeling a little overwhelmed by It all. Lucy had bought a lot - it was saying something when he was left wondering if she had any sense of restraint when it came to shopping.

He was suddenly grateful they didn't have the means to buy all this stuff back home.

Still, he couldn't help but be amazed over the sheer amount she bought. She couldn't decide what he wanted so she had just settled on everything?

She really was a strange human.

He began to dig into the bags, pulling out clothes from a fashion he didn't understand. Natsu stared at it, far used to the thinner and flowing fabrics of his world instead of the sturdy, thicker ones here.

And the designs! They were so strange.

"Go on! Try some on!" Lucy said enthusiastically, tossing what appeared to be a sleeveless shirt and pants directly into his face.

He pulled them off and stared at them, mystified.

How was he even supposed to put them on?

The time he was in human form in Fiore was centuries ago. His style was outdated even in his world since Natsu never had to transform down as a human.

Navigating something as simple as a zipper was going to be a daunting task. He swallowed a bit thickly.

He gave Lucy one last pout and marched into the bathroom Lucy pointed out. He had since learned never to try and undress in front of Lucy, she was prone to much screaming and panicking the moment she realized he had no clothes on.

He didn't quite understand why, but he figured it was because of the noble upbringing she no doubt had.

Not favoring getting nailed in the face with something hard, Natsu marched off to get changed.

Lucy listened with badly concealed amusement as Natsu thumped around the bathroom, swearing creatively as he tried to figure his clothes out. She heard more than one comment about Gray being the one who wore stuff like this, and had to bite back a laugh.

Natsu really was ridiculous when he wanted to be.

The clothes were different yes, but the styles weren't that different.

She'd seen Master Makarov wearing Hawaiian shirts, and Gray in blue jeans before he stripped out of them.

Surely this wasn't that different?

Then again, Gajeel had mentioned Natsu hadn't been seen out of his dragon form in centuries. It was entirely possible he really hadn't changed, and therefore didn't know how more modern clothes worked anymore.

She moved over to tap on the door when he let out a particularly frustrated whine, "Need a hand in there Natsu?" She asked tentatively, hoping he was at least mostly dressed. And had his underwear on.

The door flung open, "What kind of weird thing is this?!" He demanded, his face flushed with frustration as he waved his top around.

Lucy sighed as she led him out and shook the top out, "It's like your vest." She explained, "Put it on the same way."

She helped him get it on and then grabbed the bottom part of the zipper, "Now pay attention. This is how you work the zipper."

She carefully showed him, trying hard not to think about what her hands were hovering near, and zipped it up, "See? You can adjust it by tugging it up or down."

Natsu stared at it as if the zipper were some kind of evil torture device. His jaw jutted out in defiance, his hands dropping down to the front of his new shirt and patting his stomach where it was now covered by fabric.

It's weird. Why can't they just have a neck hole and arm holes - is that too much to ask for?" He grumbled, giving the zipper a drag down his chest.

A strange, excited glint entered his eyes as he dragged it up and down, suddenly fascinated by the noise it made every time he pulled on it.

This was going to be a long day. She already knew it.

Natsu as it turned out, wasn't too picky about what he liked. Although he went nuts over the dragon printed shirt Lucy had bought him. It had a lot of strange black lines and designs thrown into the mix, and it was pretty gaudy to look at.

But that perfectly summed up Natsu she thought. It only made sense he would pick out the most visually offensive article of clothing from the pile as his favorite.

It also wasn't fair how naturally he seemed to fit into her worlds clothing. While they weren't so different from his world in how they operated, the fashion itself was wildly different.

Natsu looked perfectly at home wearing clothes, and considering he went from wearing practically nothing to being covered up, it was saying something.

"Am I allowed to go outside now?" Natsu asked, wrapping his scarf around his neck over a blue shirt, "I have pants on and everything, and they're even facing the right direction!"

The pride in which he said that could not go ignored and Lucy spluttered out a laugh that had Natsu grinning alongside her.

"I guess you can go out!" Lucy allowed but made sure to block his path before he could charge out the door.

"But first, shoes," She pointed at his bare feet, "Most places won't even let you through the door if you don't have your feet covered."

This caused him to roll his eyes as he eyed the boots she bought for him. They looked much too encasing for his tastes. He was used to walking barefoot. The soles in his feet were strong, and Natsu was used to feeling the heat from the earth rising into his body from them.

"You humans have so many rules. Does everyone have to get dressed like this? Or is it just me?" He asked

Lucy snorted, "You're starting to sound like Gray."

She didn't even try to hide how her eyes rolled at the offended look Natsu gave her.

"It's everyone." She smirked in amusement, not budging until he moved to put his shoes on, "Businesses have a rule about it so we have to abide by it." She shrugged, "Though if you really hate the boots you can always wear the sandals instead."

By that time Natsu had both his feet jammed in his boots and one laced up, and Lucy couldn't help giggling at the look he shot her over that tidbit.

She was absolutely certain that a prank of some kind was in her future for it, but it had just been too easy!

Lucy smiled as she grabbed her purse and her keys, "C'mon. Let me show you some of the sights before we try heading back." She giggled a little, "We can even hit the pharmacy and find out if the medicine we have for motion sickness works on dragons."

Just like that Natsu's plans for revenge were gone.

His eyes went wide as he stared at her in disbelief, "You have medicine for motion sickness?" He whispered, hardly able to believe it.

Lucy blinked at him a little in surprise, "Well sure. Lots of people can get it. We have all kinds of stuff to help treat it." She shrugged, "Maybe some of it will help you out."

Natsu could hardly believe his ears. His world didn't have anything like that. The 'treatment' was lie down and try to ignore it until it went away. Maybe with the addition of something to settle the stomach. Did Lucy's people really have such miracle medicine?

If so he just had to see it for himself.

He grinned as he jumped back to his feet, grumpiness over having to put on boots long forgotten, "Well let's go!"

Lucy rolled her eyes in amusement and led him out the door and into the blistering late afternoon heat.

She watched as Natsu happily rolled up his sleeves, his head turning up towards the sun. It was still absolutely boiling outside, but Natsu seemed to love it. Even without his natural flames, heat radiated from his body in a wave. It wasn't as intense as it had been, but he was still definitely warmer than the average person.

He was soaking up the heat like a sponge, looking rather pleased with himself. The sudden image of Natsu curled up on a rock under a heating lamp sprang to Lucy's mind and she was forced to smother a giggle.

It was such a reptilian thing to do, made even funnier since he was a dragon.

They headed out to the corner market on foot. Occasionally Natsu would make a face at the smell of car exhaust and every now and then he'd clap a hand over one of his ears from the noise pollution.

Even with all the distractions, he seemed to enjoy himself. Natsu sprang from one end of the spectrum to the other, bouncing through excitement to absolute awe over something as simple as packaged ice cream.

"And they don't use ice lacrima to keep it cold?" He would ask in awe, nose pressed against the glass window which held the frozen treats in the corner store.

His breath fogged up the glass, hot against the icy surface and it took a promise of rocky road to get him away from licking the freezer.

Lucy shook her head a little as they wandered the aisles, Natsu sniffing at everything and asking all kinds of questions. Just like an excited little kid. She couldn't really blame him though. She'd done a more restrained version of the same thing the first time Erza and Levy took her shopping.

It had been quite an experience to deal with an outdoor farmer's market. Not to mention the many shops that to her eyes were old timey shops from before things were mass produced.

By the time she was done with what she actually wanted to get she had quite a selection of various foods as well. Though she'd firmly pulled Natsu away from getting frozen hamburgers or something.

"I'll take you out and show you what that stuff tastes like fresh." She promised. Though at this point she was a little worried by what Natsu did want her to get. If he ate all that a sugar rush was imminent.

A truly terrifying thought that.

She shuddered a little as she nudged him out the door, promising a big dinner as neither had eaten since...she actually had no idea how long it had been.

Ugh, it was her trip to Earthland all over again. At least she had money this time and hadn't landed in a burned out forest. A definite step up.

"C'mon." She smiled, "I'll show you the park and we can eat our ice cream before dinner okay?"

She wasn't worried about spoiling appetites. Natsu's was terrifying despite his loss to Erza, and she herself was fairly hungry now that she was actually thinking about it.

They managed to get their hands on some food from some vendors at the park, Natsu as usual, ate an impressive amount while Lucy was capable of restraining herself. Natsu flopped back onto the grass they were sitting on, his arms folding behind his head.

This was a very fun and interesting world. He could see himself getting into all kinds of trouble here. Furthermore, he was almost normal here. What a strange concept.

Well, he still had all the physical features of a dragon but without his magic. No fire came to him even though he felt like he could still consume it. Natsu thought it was doubtful it would do anymore than give him a satisfying burn in his stomach.

Still, as nice as that thought was, Natsu missed the quiet of his world. Lucy's was full of fast paced convenience, but it was missing the bright vibrancy Natsu was used to.

That being said he wanted to explore all of it. Lucy's world was vast, and he wondered how much of it they could see.

The wind shifted and Natsu picked up a rather powerful scent of cologne, enough to make him hack suddenly and wrinkle his nose. It soured his mood when his eyes watered from the smell and he ducked his nose into his scarf.

"Ugh, why do people here drench themselves in smelly stuff. It's gross," Natsu groaned.

In fact, Lucy had done that too when they first began to live together.

Up until Natsu had thrown all of it into the sink and set it ablaze in a fit of temper. A bit of an overreaction to be sure, but the smell of so much lavender invading his senses was like a gas grenade to the face for him.

Natsu liked her scent much better now. She still used the sprays she was fond of, but used them to a lesser extent so it didn't irritate his nose.

He blinked as the thought settled in him and he wondered...

How long had she been doing that for?

What a strange thought, but had she adjusted that behavior just to help him be a little more comfortable? A sudden jolt of guilt twisted in his chest and he glanced at Lucy out the corner of his eye.

Lucy laughed a little, "Sorry Natsu. Most people don't have noses as sensitive as yours." She smirked, "Though I agree some of them are excessive even to my nose."

She eyed him for a moment, "Out of curiosity, when did you wash your scarf?" She asked, catching him by complete surprise, and blushed, "I mean, I never see you without it, but it looks like you've been working on cleaning it up."

She smiled at him, "It's starting to look really good."

Natsu stared at her, not sure what to say. He hadn't been washing his scarf. It was made from Igneel's scales, though she wouldn't know that, and those didn't get dirty in the conventional sense.

In fact, he was a little uncertain about why it had gotten so dirty to begin with. Though he agreed he was happy it was starting to shine again.

However, he just grinned at her, "Just wait until it's completely clean."

Thankfully, Lucy seemed to accept that answer and stood up, "C'mon, how about I show you a little of the nightlife before we head back to my place?" She grinned, "And I promise, no clubs."

That would just be cruel and unusual punishment to him.

"If you don't wanna go to one, then it sounds like fun," Natsu smirked at her and stood up, his fingers curling into his scarf. He let out a quiet hum in the back of his throat and patted his pants free of dirt.

Lucy guided Natsu through the various things to do in her homeworld. She was a little embarrassed to admit that many of the things she showed Natsu, she was experiencing herself for the first time.

How often had she turned in after a day instead of going out to explore? Showing her life to Natsu made her look at her homeworld differently.

She managed to drag him into the car to drive off, and much to his everlasting joy - the motion sickness medication she bought actually worked for him.

Lucy thought Natsu would actually shed tears of joy.

So she took him with her all over the place, having an impromptu adventure with Natsu to all the unique nooks and crannies Lucy had never seen before. It was an experience she enjoyed and it felt so natural to do it.

She really had changed quite a bit since she was last here, hadn't she?

As much fun as they had though, Lucy found herself missing Fairy Tail. That was her home now, and she wanted to return. All their friends were waiting back at the guild, with jobs lining up.

Rent had to be paid after all.

"Are you about ready to head back home?" Lucy asked Natsu as they moved up the steps to her condo.

Natsu gave her a startled look. Home? She'd said home?

He'd never doubted that they would return. It was impossible she could keep him as entertained every day as she had today. Even with traveling around. And besides, there was no question he missed his magic, and longed for the cleaner simplicity of Earthland.

However, he hadn't expected that word to pop out of her mouth in reference to his world. Did she really consider it home now?

For some reason the thought made his heart thump a little in excitement and he grinned, "Yeah!"

Lucy laughed as his eagerness as she unlocked the door and headed inside, "Then let's get your stuff packed and I'll open the gate. I think I've got the idea now, so hopefully we won't have problems."

"That's good." Natsu replied, "I'm not sure I'd wanna get stuck on top of one of those skyscraper things." He shuddered a bit at the thought. It wasn't natural for a building to be that tall. Not even the palace was that big.

Lucy winced a bit at the idea herself as she pulled out a sturdy old duffle bag for him to pack up with, "No kidding." She agreed fervently, tossing it to him, "You get started on packing up. I'm going to print off some of the pictures we took before we go."

She was sure the others would love to see glimpses of her world, and she'd been liberal with taking pictures from the cheap camera she'd picked up earlier.

Natsu had no idea what she'd just said, so he shrugged and began tossing his new clothes into the bag.

He knew Lucy would probably fuss at him for just balling the clothes up and tossing them into the bag, but he could iron them out with a single touch anyway when they got back home. _Home_. The word filled him with a giddy sort of fuzzy warmth. A small smile tugged secretively at his lips.

In the other room, his ears picked up the sound of Lucy clicking away at her glowing-box thing. It was totally a lacrima, he didn't care what she called it.

There was a distinct hum of something whirring to life and then an terrible groaning noise of what sounded like gears ripping against paper. Whatever she was doing in that room sounded awful. Was that the 'printer'?

Why did it sound like a dying animal?

Natsu slung the pack on his back, walking into the room Lucy had her lacrima in. He watched her excitedly gathering up pictures. She showed them to him, shoving them under his nose with an enthusiasm he found catching.

The images were incredible after all. Sure they had magical images and paintings in his world, but they were largely drawn. Natsu had never seen such a life-like rendition.

"Whoaaaaa," He caught one of the papers between his fingers and held it in front of his face, "You sure your world doesn't have magic? This is pretty crazy for your 'science' stuff."

Lucy gave him a smug look and took the photos from him, turning him around by the strap across his chest and tucking them into the side pocket for safekeeping.

"It's not magic, just a simple play on light," Lucy zipped up his bag again with a jerk of her hand and patted his back just between his shoulderblades.

"Now try not to be too rough with the pack otherwise the photos will wrinkle," She instructed firmly, "I wanna show them to everyone back at the guild!"

Natsu opened his mouth to reply, but abruptly stiffened and spun around in shock as a familiar stench hit his nose. It struck his sinuses like a well remembered blow and Natsu's mouth thinned. He dropped a hand on Lucy's shoulder, catching her attention with the tenseness around his eyes.

It was the cologne from before. He was sure of it. Lucy never smelled even vaguely like that, and there was no reason for that smell to be seeping into her apartment from the door.

A moment later there was a knock at the door that had Lucy frowning and automatically moving to answer it, but he grabbed her arm to stop her, "It's the same smelly guy from before." He hissed softly, "From the park."

Lucy's eyes cut to him in alarm as the knock sounded again, louder this time, along with a, "Miss Heartfilia?"

They both turned to look at the door.

* * *

 ** _DUNDUNDUNDUN_**

 ** _Man you gotta love us. Don'tcha? OH OH OH AND GUYS WE HAVE MOAR FANART FROM THE SUPER LOVeLY the-ultimate-anime-trash ! SHE DREW A GIF OF NATSU SHIVERING IN A BLANKET. GUYS HOLY SHIT IT IS SO CUTE. CHECK IT OUT HERE. Just replace the X's with periods :D_**

the-ultimate-anime-trashXtumblrXcom/image/131709245520

 _ **Guys I can't do the review responses today. XD They take an hour and a half to respond and format and it's SUPER LATE. I am sorry ;3; I wanna talk to each and every one of you! But I'm DYINNNNNG. I will answer the questions though!**_

 _ ***The Exceeds are coming EVENTUALLY. Not this chapter, not the next chapter, but they will show up in this act.**_

 _ ***Natsu does know about physical touch between humans, but since he's spent most of his life in isolation, the idea of love is more of an abstract concept. He does about the dirties though.** _

_***At the moment, their bond is 'suppressed' - no magic, no bond.**_

 _ ***HAPPY BIRTHDAY CRIMSONLIGHTKEY - as your birthday gift, I will tell you the lemon will appear in Act 3. That is all.**_

 _ ***I'm afraid I, mslead, cannot marry you. For my heart belongs to another.**_

 _ ***The Gates do not hurt the spirits if they are opened. They only hurt the spirits if they remain opened. It's sorta the same like if a spirit stays in our world too long.**_

 _ ***If Lucy didn't end up with Natsu who do I think she'd be with? I dunno. Haven't thought about it to be honest. I actually didn't really ship NALU until really into the GMG. I could see hints, but I didn't have a focus shipper heart until after then. So I dunnoooo**_

 _ **THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR REVIEWING! IT MEANS THE WORLD TO US!**_


	24. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

**_Act 2_**

* * *

 ** _24_**

 ** _I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings_**

 _"See, you don't have to think about doing the right thing. If you're for the right thing, then you do it without thinking."_

 _-_ Maya Angelou _, **I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings**_

* * *

"This can't be good." She whispered, real fear on her face as she flashed back to the guys that had been chasing her when all this started, "Are those guys _still_ after me?" She whimpered, "But...that doesn't make sense."

Natsu frowned, disliking the sudden look of fear on Lucy's face. It was one thing in his world. She was a powerful mage and growing in strength daily. She could protect herself. But now she was like she had been when he met her. Vulnerable and largely unable to fight.

"Well if they are, then they can tell us what they want with you after we're done beating them up!" He snarled, his fangs flashing as he cracked his knuckles.

Her hands slunk around his arm and pulled him back, surprising him with the forcefulness behind it He glanced at her, surprised to see how tight with tension she was.

Whoa. She was really freakin' out about this...

Lucy had never shown so much fear. Not even when she was confronted with a fire breathing dragon. Or any of the others that wanted to do her harm.

But a single, mortal man knocking on her door made her lose all color in her face?

An angry growl bubbled in the back of his throat. Maybe he had to see what was so scary about this guy.

"Natsu wait, please! You don't have your magic, we have to try to get out another way!" She pleaded, dragging him into another room.

Displeased at being pulled from the door and the possible fight, Lucy dragged him into her room and shoved open the window there. Looking around, she gestured at Natsu to give her a boost up.

"I don't need my magic to grind his face into ash," Natsu grumbled in distaste, but hooked his fingers together to lift her up and through the window.

As soon as her blond ponytail escaped through the window, Natsu heard the front door crash open.

Persistent bastards, weren't they?

Natsu lifted his shoulders up and tumbled gracelessly out the window after Lucy.

"There she is!" A voice shouted from the right, someone having caught sight of their escape attempt. Natsu cursed himself for thinking the man from the park had come alone.

Of course they wouldn't come by themselves if they were after Lucy. After all, Lucy wasn't alone, and they would know that.

"Run!" Lucy cried out, grabbing a hold of Natsu's wrist and dragging him behind her, "I can build a gate out of here!"

But Natsu knew she couldn't build one while she was panicking and running. He wrenched his hand free from her grip, "I ain't running Lucy." He growled at her.

Ignoring her look of surprise, he cracked his knuckles and smirked, fingers curling into a fist, "Just focus on getting that gate built. I'll go work off a little stress."

He caught sight of the first man advancing towards them, the glint of metal in his hand telling he was armed. A knife, enough to do a bit of damage to most people.

But again, Natsu wasn't most people.

Lucy stared at Natsu in mingled awe and shock, "Be careful." She told him, aware by his stance that she wasn't going to be able to talk him out of this, and with the bond suppressed she couldn't force him away either, "They might be armed with something worse than knives."

Not that she wanted to contemplate what else they could be armed with, but now was hardly the time to get into a discussion about tasers and the difference between handguns here and the kind Bisca and Alzack used.

She would just have to hope that it didn't come up. Or if it did Natsu was able to deal with it. With that slender hope in mind she took a breath to try and calm herself and began to concentrate.

Natsu's grin turned wicked as Lucy turned to building her gate, and dropped his pack beside her, "Sounds like fun." He purred darkly, his sharp fangs glistening in the moonlight.

The one in front, with the knife, scowled and took a swing at him. One Natsu easily dodged with a cackle as he slammed his fist hard into his stomach. Even without his fist bathed in fire his punch was like getting kicked by a horse. The knife wielder went down with a groan.

Lucy winced a little as he fought behind her, but took heart from the way he was apparently beating the snot out of them. A confidence that helped her focus on her job.

"Come on." She murmured as the soft golden outline grew, "Just a little more."

She easily visualized the guild hall door, and wished with all her might she was on the other side of it with all their friends laughing and having fun as they picked out jobs or got into fights.

Erza, Gray, Levy, Jellal, Gajeel, Master Makarov. All of them were so very dear to her, and she longed to be back with them.

To her surprised relief the magic surged through her strongly and for the first time she succeeded in creating a stable gate that led exactly where she wanted it to.

It opened before her, revealing golden light on the other side, and in the center was the guild hall. Their friends were there, staring at the sudden gate in surprise. She smiled and turned, "Natsu! It's ready!"

However, her shout had the unfortunate consequence of distracting him for one crucial moment and he took a hit that sent him stumbling away from the man he'd been wrestling with. A man who then pulled something out of his jacket that made Lucy's blood run with ice.

Her entire world seemed to freeze as she heard that horrifying click, and realized it was aimed right for Natsu's heart.

"Natsu!" She cried, and lunged for him at the same time the gun fired.

It was only by pure luck that she was almost right next to him as she surely wouldn't have beat the bullet otherwise. As it was she shoved him out of the way just in time to scream in pain as the bullet impacted her instead.

Her magic snapped at once, the gate dragging them through, Lucy's grip on Natsu still tight as they pulled through. They were swallowed whole through blinding light and the shouting of voices followed them.

Natsu impacted hard on the ground, grunting when the breath rushed from his lungs at the feel of her body pressing into his diaphragm. The scent of clean air soothed his senses. A rushing return of heat and magic roared to life through his veins, unfettered by the limitations of Lucy's world. The return of his inner flame stunned him for a moment.

He took a deep breath and set a hand on Lucy's back, "Jeez Lucy, what's the rush? I was just getting into-"

He had been about to tell her he was about to start having some real fun with those guys soon, when he felt something warm and wet on his hand from where he touched her.

And then the air shifted, and the scent of blood, thick and heavy filled his nose.

At once it was like something lead had dropped onto his chest, an icy cold spilling through his veins.

No, that wasn't possible- it wasn't-

"Lucy?" Natsu asked, sitting up and gently turning her around. There was a heavy stream of blood coming from her left shoulder, as if something had lodged into it. Her head lolled on her neck like a ragdoll and her face was white. The pain had made her pass out after traveling through the gate, and the dragon felt sick with guilt. Natsu had seen the man draw the gun, but whatever it fired was not the material he was used to seeing come from it.

"Lucy!" His brain wasn't thinking fast enough. It was almost like his shock that she had been shot was warring with the fact she had apparently been shot _trying to help him._ Lucy made a choked noise, and Natsu nearly staggered with relief as he felt her breath, warm and alive against his palm.

Alive.

Mechanically, he caught sight of the man he had been wrestling with sit up on the floor next to him. He was groaning and shaking awareness back into his body. He had been dragged along too?

Something black and hateful swelled within Natsu like a tide and a fury unlike any he had felt in centuries possessed him.

 _ **He**_ did this.

Natsu's hand grabbed him from under the collar, yanking him upright and dragging the man's knees against the hard ground. Natsu surged up in a riptide of emotion, his fury volcanic. The man scrambled for his gun, only to find it backhanded from his grasp by the furious dragon. It went skittering across the guild hall floor.

Fire erupted from Natsu, coating his body in a shell of his emotions. He breathed out a stream of flame from his nose, an angry inferno filling his lungs, boiling his blood, maddening him to all sense or reason.

This vile waste of life nearly killed Lucy.

Death would be too merciful for him. Natsu would make him suffer. He _wanted_ to make him suffer. His eyes flashed crimson as he tapped into an uncontrolled spark of demonic fury. Natsu felt the pressure of his magic crack against his skin, fighting to get out and _destroy_. This power wasn't the dragon they were used to, even at his worst. No, this was the demon. Zeref's finest creation boiling under the surface, brought out by the sheer force of his emotions.

In the background he could hear the shocked gasp of their guildmates, but they were deafened under the roaring of blood in his ears.

This time Lucy wouldn't be able to stop him. _**No one**_ would be able to stop him. And wasn't it just as infuriating to know Lucy couldn't stop him because this _pig had shot her_.

He raised a flaming fist, intending on punching a hole through this man's skull and enacting his own violent brand of justice on him. He could burn everything. Skin to ash, flesh to charred lumps, and bones to hollow and brittle sticks. Viciousness rose within him like a wave, Lucy's sweet smile bubbling along the surface fueling his demonic impulses.

In a flash, he had almost lost her because of this trash.

 _"Not all crimes are severe enough to warrant death Natsu."_

His heart hammered, the memory of her face flashing before his eyes like some kind of mantra. The quiet whisper of her voice in his head sending a shock of reason through his skull. Lucy. Against his will, he felt himself calming. Natsu struggled to hold onto his rage, but the memory of that fight was like a cooling balm against his skin.

Her voice came back to him, the echo of his fight with the mugger and how he had mercilessly tried to deform him. This one was so much worse than the other. Did this one even deserve mercy?

" _Prove them wrong."_

Natsu's fist shook, trembling between indecision, blinding fury and returning coherency. He felt like he was standing on the edge of a blade. Knuckles cracking, he ached to be done with the man, uncaring of his frantic sobs or terrified pleading. Natsu had heard begging before, he was deaf to those cries.

But not when it came to Lucy.

If he killed this man, she would be disappointed.

Wouldn't she?

A roar of frustration burst from Natsu as he settled on his decision. His flames burst from his throat and Natsu slammed his forehead against the man's skull.

He went limp in Natsu's grasp, dropping as heavily as a stone.

Knocked out cold, Natsu threw him in a disgusted heap, murder on his mind but fear for Lucy making his desire for vengeance subside for the moment. That truly had been the deciding factor to spare the man's life or not. His fear for her. Lucy was hurt, and that was his priority. No matter his feeling on the subject, he would wait for her.

He scooped her into his arms, taking one look at her pale face and feeling his stomach twist sickeningly.

But if anything happened to Lucy...

Natsu shot a glare to the unconscious man in a heap behind him.

Fortunately, Natsu didn't have to carry her far as their surprised guildmates had been watching the whole thing and had sprung into action the moment it was safe to approach.

"Take her to the infirmary Natsu!" Erza ordered briskly, "Mira, Juvia, get the first aid kits and bandages! Gajeel, go find Porlyusica and get her here as fast as you can!"

Gajeel nodded and shifted into his partial form before taking off as fast as he could fly while the others scrambled to either obey Erza or get out of the way while Levy quickly led Natsu into a part of the guild he hadn't had to visit before.

Erza, meanwhile, focused on the man Natsu had knocked out, "Jellal." She growled, her expression dark as a sword appeared in her hand, "I think we will require some answers out of this one."

"Agreed." The blue haired wizard purred, his own expression darkening with restrained fury. For a moment it was possible to see a glimpse of the man he'd once been as Erza grabbed their new prisoner by the hair and dragged him further inside.

It was an expression worn by most of the guild. Even without having been able to see the event itself clearly it was obvious enough to them that the stranger had played an important part in this mess, and he would answer to them for even attempting to harm one of their own.

Natsu wasn't paying attention to any of that. The interrogation could go on for as long as they needed it to.

Of all the times for Lucy to finally make them appear right where they needed to. She wasn't even awake to make a smug remark over it.

His foot tapped anxiously as he waited outside for news about Lucy. Fingers tightening in an anxious squeeze around his arms, Natsu swallowed around the confused ball of emotions he felt rising in his throat.

No one had ever done anything like that for him before. The idiot! Even if Natsu had been shot, the moment he fell through that gate, his healing would have kicked in.

But a part of him knew she had very likely saved his life. Again. With where it had been pointed... He was unsure if in this body he could withstand an injury like that.

She was still an idiot though, and Natsu would be certain to tell her that when she woke up.

"That was really reckless," Natsu mumbled into his knees.

Gajeel returned with Porlyusica while Natsu was waiting, and the old woman pushed her way inside with brisk efficiency. But the iron dragon didn't leave as soon as his job was done. Instead he leaned against a wall and crossed his arms, scowling darkly as he stared at the door separating them from what was happening inside.

He and blondie weren't exactly what anyone would call friends, but he'd come to respect her in the short time he'd known her. She might not be a dragoness, but she sure had the heart of one. Sorta like his shrimp. And since Lucy meant so much to Levy and the guild it pissed him off that she'd been hurt.

She was one of theirs dammit, and he wanted to beat the bastard who had hurt her to a pulp. However, Erza and Jellal were taking care of that. Quite effectively if the jerk's frightened chattering was anything to go by.

"Any word?" Levy asked softly from his elbow, making him jump a little. He hadn't even heard her approaching he was so wrapped up in his thoughts.

He sighed a little and shook his head, "Not yet." He rumbled, glancing over at where Natsu was pacing anxiously. Did the salamander even know he was doing that? Probably not. Gajeel had never seen him act like this before. Not even before when he first attempted to breach Natsu's territory fifty years ago to find Levy. The dragon then was very different from the one he saw now.

He glanced back at Levy and frowned a little, "What's that?" He rumbled, pointing to the bag that was nearly as large as she was.

Levy smiled a little, "I found it where the gate was. I figured it was probably Lucy's."

Natsu looked up at that, a pained expression crossing his face as he remembered the contents of that bag and how excited Lucy had been about them, "It's-" He started to say, but cut off when Mirajane came out and all attention riveted to her.

There was a moment of tense silence before she smiled at them, and in an instant relief flooded the air.

"She'll be fine." She reported happily, "Juvia and Porlyusica were able to get the thing in her shoulder out and clean the wound. It'll take a little time, but Lucy should heal up just fine."

Natsu felt the ground tip under his feet as a relief so profound it could drown him, poured through the entire guild.

Twisting around, he glanced over at where the guild were all breathing out sighs of relief. He could relate. Lucy hadn't deserved that. Natsu never wanted to see something like that again.

Swallowing tightly, he edged closer to the room she was in and sat down, not moving as the guild all moved around to see her.

He would wait his turn.

After all he had a lot of things to think about.

One of the most important of those thoughts, was how Lucy had suddenly become more than just an interesting human he was stuck with.

At some point he began to care for her. Enough for him to feel genuine terror over seeing her like this.

He glanced back at the dufflebag, having laid forgotten nearby while the guild members talked amongst themselves about who got to see Lucy first.

Strange feelings dug at his heart, and Natsu's hand clenched around his the fabric of his shirt. His fingers tangled in his scarf, twisting it close. Igneel's scales were warm against his skin, but for once he could feel no comfort from them.

 _ **HAHAHAHA Man you guys all thought Lucy was gonna get kidnapped. FOOOOOOLED YA. Just viciously shot. hoohoohoohoo... Also there was a surprising amount of you that were very confused over Natsu's lack of reaction over Lucy's underwear.**_

 _ **He hasn't worn pants in like, hundreds of years. Natsu doesn't really care about some lacy scraps of fabric.** _

_ATTENTION NEW READERS! Parallels updates once every two days!_

 **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! Sawakaze-Steph16 - OgaxHilda - Amelia Loves Anime - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Guest** (ohoho yes. How did you know?) - **Snavej** (I hope this fic continues to cheer you up!) - **sarara18** (I TOTALLY KNOW YOU. YA LIL' BUTT. DON'T THINK YOU CAN HIDE. *blows kisses*) - **ThatBrunnette** (Natsu doesn't really have a feral 'dragon' side :O ) - **rrrrRANDOMmm** (DEVEEEEELOPMENT!) - **SakuraPetal91** **\- bluebirdeyes - Mo0nyMoon** (Oh yeah he's definitely stupid giddy when he can be. They're a good match) - **shvartzit** (HAHAHAHA WHOOPS. Guess your psychic powers were wrong this time) **\- the-clumsy-one** (He really is a cutie. And of course we'll stick with Nalu, what else would it be? :O ) - **Dark-Angel-of-Wicked-Chaos17** (I'm glad we could make you ripped from laughter) **\- kirby42280 - SC** (We update once every two days) - **wishyouweremedontya** (I WILL NOT TELL YOU. Also, I answered your underwear question up ahead. Hahaha, he just doesn't care about clothes. Like he gives no shits about them. None. And I'm not even sure girls wore garments like that back when he was kickin' it in his human form.) - **monarchyfly** (your wish is our command.) - **Twishadowhunter** (The upcoming lemon is in the fuuuuuture. You guys will know it when it is coming.) - **Animallover** (Natsu isn't used to people freely giving him things without forced coercion. He was a happy lizard! Both Natsu and Lucy are thinking of Fairy Tail as their home :D ) **\- Poxxy** (Oh yeah, that's the goal. To show his true personalty come out in reverse the longer the chapters go) - **equastar - CrimsonLightKey** (You are welcome. Hahaha Too bad the sunshine didn't last AMIRITE?) - **ThatOneExoticPotato** (Lets hope so *crosses fingers*) - **panicatthediscofreak7** (lil' bit of everything :D ) - **HazelDragonNora** (share with the class) - **Etrinity** (NO CLIFFIES THIS TIME I PROMISE) - **Celtika82 - Reaper3698** (Wow that was a legit good song. I would agree, the lyrics are so... sad but a little hopeful? I'm so glad you liked itt hough!) - **The-Rosette-Wolf** (HAHAHA. Hope we crushed some of that fluff from your heart...hahahahahahahaha) - **guest account** (Wow, man this is a marathon not a sprint! I'm glad you like our fic!) - **Little Red** (ohohoho, no. But excellent guess) - **Guest** (AND THEN WE CRUSHED IT! HA!) - **Dragodden** (haha that's funny. Very Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Thank you so very, very much for stopping by!)


	25. Charlotte's Web

**_Act 2  
(It's a loooong one)_**

* * *

 ** _25_**

 ** _Charlotte's Web_**

 _"Why did you do all this for me?' he asked. 'I don't deserve it. I've never done anything for you.' 'You have been my friend,' replied Charlotte. 'That in itself is a tremendous thing."_

― E.B. White ** _, Charlotte's Web_**

* * *

Lucy laughed as she showed the, mercifully undamaged, pictures she'd taken to her friends. She was still confined to bed for another day, and her arm was going to be in a sling for a few more, but the rest of the guild had been streaming in and out as soon as she was up to having a steady flow of visitors so she was hardly lonely.

Natsu had, of course, become her permanent visitor. He hadn't left her side except when necessary the moment he'd been allowed to see her. A gesture that had surprised her as much as it had pleased her and she made sure he knew that by smiling at him often.

"Is that really what buildings in your world look like?" Erza asked in shocked amazement as she shared a picture of the skyline with Jellal, "How do they get them so tall?"

Not even the tower of heaven had been as large as some of these seemed to be.

Lucy grinned, "It is, and I have no idea. Structural engineering isn't really my thing. But we've been building them that way for over a century so it works well enough."

She shook her head a little, "Honestly I like Earthland's version better. You can't tell, but it's all concrete and steel and glass in there. I prefer something a bit more organic like you find here." She giggled a little, "Though I would love to introduce you guys to air conditioning!"

"What's air conditioning?" Levy asked, her eyes wide with curiosity. Lucy's world was so different! It was no wonder she'd been so confused when they first met! And she was dying to know as many details as her friend could provide.

"It's a system that allows people to regulate the temperature inside buildings." Lucy explained, "I couldn't begin to tell you how it works, but in the summer it cools things off and in the winter it heats them up without needing a fire."

"How interesting..." Jellal mused, his eyes lighting up excitedly as he began thinking about how such a thing might work in their world.

Levy opened her mouth to say something else when the clumping of boots outside drew their attention and Gajeel stepped inside.

The iron dragon eyed them for a moment before stomping over to Lucy, his expression a curious mix of emotions she wasn't entirely sure she could decipher, and pulled his hand out of his pocket. Her eyes widened as she realized he was holding a shiny gold key in it.

"Here." The dragon grunted, slamming the key on her bedside table, "Pinky says you ain't a bad mistress. Whatever the hell that means. An' we figure you need someone strong enough to open their own damn gates if somethin' else happens."

Lucy gently picked up the key and her jaw dropped as she recognized Virgo's symbol on it, "Gajeel..." She murmured in shocked gratitude, "Thank you..."

Gajeel just snorted and waved it off, "You can thank me by not gettin' shot again." The dragon growled gruffly and stomped off.

Lucy stared at the key, turning it over in her hand and biting her bottom lip. It was strange Gajeel would just give her something like this. Weren't dragons supposed to be freakishly territorial over their hoards?

Even despite her improving partnership with Natsu, she didn't know where his was, or what was in it. The dragon was extremely tight lipped about the cave where he slept while in dragon form.

One look from Levy told Lucy everything she needed to know though. The expression of happiness on her face as she watched Gajeel march out was practically a neon sign after all.

Levy quietly excused herself to go after the iron dragon, the sounds of her teasing and his 'Quit bein' so nosey shrimp!' loud enough to be heard through the door.

Erza and Jellal took the opportunity to excuse themselves as well, and left her alone with Natsu, who was staring at the key in Lucy's hand. The expression on his face looked almost as if he was expecting it to electrocute her at any moment.

"He gave you the key," He muttered into the silence, his eyes sharp on it.

"Yeah, he did." Lucy replied, still a little stunned that she was holding it. According to Leo and Grandpa Cross, Virgo was one of the more powerful spirits of the Zodiac. And she didn't require any special summoning requirements like Aquarius did. This was an unbelievable addition to her collection.

She smiled a bit wryly at Natsu, "I doubt it was done purely out of concern for me, but whatever his reasons I'm very grateful. Especially if his theory about Virgo being able to appear in my world is correct."

That would certainly help her out against the creeps that wouldn't leave her alone there. She wished she knew what they wanted.

She noticed Natsu still had his eyes glued on the key and cocked her head curiously, "Does it mean something special for him to give me this?" She asked, "Or are you that surprised he would give up a part of his hoard?"

If it was the latter, she didn't blame him. She was still surprised too. Though she supposed that pleasing Levy went a long ways towards dispelling it.

The black steel dragon really had it bad for her friend.

Natsu frowned, his arms crossing over his chest when he turned his head towards her, "Well yeah!" He exclaimed.

He waved a hand at her and shook his head, "I mean, only certain dragons managed to get their hands on the celestial keys after the war. Others dropped into the hands of evil wizards or were buried entirely."

"Gajeel fought in the war." Natsu frowned, looking thoughtful, "His old man knew Igneel. My dad and I both attacked Zeref from the south. Metalicanna and Gajeel took the north. We weren't part of the same nest, so it's not like we would have ever run into one another."

"Still, the fact that he gave it to you, that key has probably been in his possession for hundreds of years," Natsu said thoughtfully.

"It's impressive."

"Or at the very least pretty stupid," He grinned at Lucy smugly.

Lucy gave him a frustrated growl and tossed a pillow at him with her viable arm, cringing as it caused her to twist and pull at her stitches. She really hated being on bed rest.

Natsu managed to catch the pillow, dark eyes peering over the edge at Lucy intensely to see if she had hurt herself. His gut twisted with guilt and his expression darkened. Clearly he heard her sharp intake of breath, and he opened his mouth to say something - anything.

She was stupid and protected him. Natsu didn't understand why. But he wondered if she even knew.

So he closed his mouth, and neither commented on her injuries.

"Why are you so interested in it then?" Lucy huffed, moving the conversation along, "do _you_ have a key?"

The dragon suddenly got extremely cagey at the question, shifting in his seat and humming. The heavy air which had begun to set in, promptly evaporated and Lucy grinned in victory.

Oh that was totally a yes.

Granted, she already knew he had one. Makarov told her as much back when she first joined the guild, but it was a little nice to know he wasn't outright denying it to her. Perhaps he was beginning to trust her more?

Lucy gave him an amused look and settled back against her pillows, "Relax." She told him with a smile, "I'm not going to demand you hand yours over or anything. I was just curious."

She carefully tucked Virgo's key in with the others, deciding maybe she would call her to set up a contract after she'd had a nap.

As much as she hated bed rest she had to admit it was somewhat warranted. She was still tiring easily, and spent large portions of the day sleeping. Thank god Jellal had done something to darken the windows so she could sleep without sunlight intruding inconveniently.

"I think I'm gonna take a nap now." She yawned sleepily, "I'll see you later."

At least she didn't have to worry about trapping him here while she slept. They'd found out that after the trip to her homeworld the bond between them had relaxed a little and Natsu had a much wider radius of movement.

So it was easy for him to head out into the main guild hall and grab some food while she slept or something.

Lucy was rather pleased by it. Levy had told her it was probably responding to the greater amount of trust between them, so the more freedom it gave Natsu the better.

Not that she cared much at the moment so long as he didn't keep her awake.

Natsu huffed and got up, slightly smacking her in the head with the pillow she had tossed at him.

He stared at the way she rolled over onto her uninjured side and his stomach rolled once more.

At her mumbled complaints, Natsu walked out of the room, thoughts a jumble. Pushing away his guilt, he thought instead of the other dragon. It was ridiculous for Gajeel to give Lucy his key. Especially not to impress a girl. Or was he really _that_ taken with Levy?

Levy seemed to have Gajeel wrapped around her finger. Served the iron freak right, he was too much of a pain in the ass on a normal day. At least with her around he was slightly more bearable to be around.

How could Gajeel just trust Lucy with it? No matter how much of a good person she was. And Natsu could no longer deny that with his suspicions. Either she was playing the longest con _in the world_ , or she was genuinely a nice human.

He was willing to put money on the latter.

But no matter how nice she was, the keys she had in her possession already were beginning to form quite an unusual collection.

With the addition of Virgo, Lucy was gaining some powerful allies. But that many gate keys in the hands of one person? It only spelled trouble.

Gajeel's reasoning was absolute crap too.

Lucy had been injured in her world. There was no way a spirit could open a gate on that side of the realms even if they were powerful. So his reasoning was useless

Which lead Natsu to think the impossible.

Gajeel _wanted_ to give Lucy the key out of the generosity in his coal black heart.

Weird.

But Natsu had to admit, it was only a temporary solution to an overall problem. Having Lucy learn how to use a weapon would be more ideal than simply giving her a new spirit to work with. Something to learn right off the bat and could keep some distance between her and her opponents if she ran out of magic.

Maybe a whip...?

He shook his head and grabbed a plate of food from Mira with a nod of thanks and headed up to the roof to do more thinking on the matter. He preferred to be up high when he did his thinking. Being closer to the clouds always cleared his head.

Which was why he was surprised when someone was up there waiting for him.

Orange hair, golden armor, and a disposition that made him want to crack his head open.

"Leo," Natsu growled.

Leo offered Natsu a small smile, but carefully kept his distance from the unpredictable dragon. He wasn't really interested in Natsu taking a chunk out of him again if he could avoid it.

"Hello Natsu." He greeted, "I hope I haven't caught you at a bad time?" He asked, a flicker of anxiety crossing his face. He, of course, knew that Lucy was on the mend and would be allowed out of the infirmary soon, but had only visited when the dragon wasn't around.

Perhaps that was a tad cowardly of him, but considering the way their last meeting had gone he was leery of inadvertently provoking Natsu while Lucy was hurt. That would not be good for any of them.

Natsu's eyes narrowed at the lion spirit, a surge of annoyance coursing through him on reflex, "Depends on your definition of a bad time." He grunted in reply, taking in Leo's wary stance at a glance, and pointedly settled on a portion of the roof away from the cat.

His gut was whining at him, so he took a bite out of his meat, and jerked his chin invitingly, "So whaddya want?" He growled, more than halfway expecting Leo to go into another one of his speeches.

"I want to ask what it would take for you to give my key to Lucy." Leo replied quietly, causing Natsu to choke a little in surprise.

"You what?" He half asked half demanded, only for Leo to meet his gaze evenly.

"I want to ask what it would take for you to give my key to Lucy." He repeated calmly, "I know you hate me now, something I can't entirely blame you for, but Lucy shouldn't suffer for it. And you know I can be far greater help to her as her contracted spirit than I am now."

A muscle in Natsu's jaw twitched and his eyes slanted towards the lion. So. He wanted to be Lucy's spirit, did he? For Natsu to give up a portion of his hoard and pass his key over to Lucy?

It was understandable now why Leo looked so nervous. He was asking him to do something so very unlike what a dragon would do.

Giving up a part of his treasure. An old part of his treasure at that. One Natsu hadn't allowed out of his sight in centuries. Not a soul had seen Leo's key besides Natsu since it came into his possession.

And as much as Natsu hated to admit it, he was reluctant to give up Leo's key for reasons that made him uncomfortable.

For one, Leo's key had originally been Igneel's, entrusted to Natsu at the end of the Celestial War. He didn't want to let it go for that reason alone.

The other though, was just as potent. As much as Natsu and Leo fought, and even the long silence between them... Leo had been Natsu's only companion for a great many years. Even with anger and bitterness laying like a chasm against them.

To give up Leo's key meant not only giving up a part of Igneel, but the only form of company that would last as long as him. Fundamentally, Natsu was as selfish as they got.

He didn't think he could be begrudged for wanting to keep that though.

Natsu had seen Lucy's kind heart. The way she treated her spirits was acceptable. There would be no danger to Leo if Natsu entrusted the key to her.

What annoyed him more now, was the timing. Leo had of course been spying on them. From whatever gates he forms when they aren't paying attention - he watched.

How else would he know to ask Natsu now, right after Gajeel gave Lucy his key, and his own heart was unsure.

"Can't wait to put the moves on Lucy ya pervy cat?" Natsu asked, chomping hard into the bone of his meat and crunching down on it.

Leo allowed a small smile and gave Natsu a patient look, "I admit, she is quite a beautiful princess, isn't she Natsu? I'm certain that is something a dragon like yourself can appreciate is it not?"

Natsu grunted evasively.

"But if she was to stay here, surely she has to be better protected than she is now?" Leo asked.

Natsu laid back against the tile of the roof, thumping his heel against it as he thought. Leo wasn't wrong. Lucy needed to learn how to fight. But not just with her magic. In fact her gates were part of her problem, as she was beginning to focus her training just around that and a dependence on magic was beginning to form.

"I'll make you a deal," Natsu drawled to the lion, delaying his decision.

Leo's feline ears perked on the top of his head in interest, Natsu almost snorted at the very cat-like motion.

"Lucy already has Aquarius, Cancer, Taurus, and now Virgo," He smirked at Leo, "If she can somehow get her hands on Sagittarius, I'll gladly give her your key."

Leo stepped closer to Natsu, his eyes sharp with interest, "Is that your word as a dragon Natsu? I don't need to remind you how important a promise is to a celestial spirit, do I?"

He rolled his shoulders, shrugging.

"Sure why not?" Natsu asked, trying not to think about the odd twist in his chest over giving up Leo's key, but thinking how it could help keep Lucy safe. Or at least buy a little time to teach her how to defend herself physically before simply giving her another magical outlet.

...It was a fair enough trade off.

"You stink up the place with litter anyway," Natsu yawned obnoxiously.

A flicker of surprise flashed over Leo's eyes, but he straightened and pulled away.

"Thank you Natsu." He murmured, though there was no gloating or triumph in his voice. Despite what Natsu believed, Leo truly treasured the friendship they'd once had, and wished it could be so again.

He felt guilty for giving up on Natsu the way he had, and wished he could go back and do things differently now, but he couldn't. And at the time there had been no indication that Natsu was inclined to even consider his words let alone change things. The only real difference between Natsu and some of the darker masters he could've had was that Natsu could neither call him at will nor force him to stay.

And the proud lion had not been able to stand it any longer after some particularly harsh words had been said. Words that could not now be unsaid. So he'd done the only thing he thought he could do and distanced himself.

He wished now that he hadn't, because Natsu was a friend and he hated giving up on those, but such wishes were like retracting spoken words. Impossible.

He studied the dragon for a moment and thought maybe even if he couldn't undo the past perhaps he could offer an olive branch so to speak.

"Until then, if you have need of me... call. I will come."

He smiled a little sadly at Natsu's startled look. He'd never declared that he would refuse a call from the dragon before, but he'd ignored all previous attempts since their fight a century ago, so perhaps promising he would show would mean something.

Or it might not. It was hard to tell with Natsu.

Natsu stared at him silently, wondering if this was some kind of joke from the lion.

Several seconds ticked by, stretching the silence between them like a web. Natsu swallowed around a heavy lump in his throat, his heart hammering in his chest.

Natsu nodded stiffly and twisted his head to look up at the sky. He could imagine the stars later on in the day, each one twinkling like a new promise.

And the anger Natsu had felt for the stars now just left a hollow ache in his ribs. It had never been a flame of hatred. But the sting of betrayal was sharp enough on its own.

Natsu knew he was inconsolable after Igneel died. After the Celestial War had torn his father's body apart and slowly killed him, abuse from the magic council hastening his demise, all Natsu had left to show for their victory was a small golden key, an old scarf, and a rejected home.

Leo had done his best to talk to Natsu and cheer him up, but after a while of so many people turning him away, Natsu had lashed out angrily at the lion. The words meant nothing, and Leo wasn't there for the abuse Natsu faced alone when the spirit returned home.

So the words Natsu snarled at him were cruel and meant to hurt Leo as badly as Natsu was hurting. And Leo escaped into the celestial realm, ignoring Natsu's apologies and pleas for him to return.

Because why should he return to the side of someone who was beyond help?

Logically Natsu knew that, but it still hurt to know he was a toxic enough person Leo felt he had to escape him.

So he stopped trying.

That sense of isolation was hard to ignore, but it seeped into Natsu and helped push him along his lonely path. Every encounter Natsu had with the lion afterwards was... tense. As Natsu fell further into darkness, Leo remained in the light. Natsu didn't want to admit he missed his only friend.

He rolled his eyes to hide the nervousness he suddenly felt over Leo's hesitant offer, trying very hard not to swallow his tongue.

"Do whatever you want," He huffed and lifted his nose into the air. Natsu knew Leo was wary to be around him. After all last time he threw him off this very roof.

"In the meantime though, better not pack your bags too soon, Lucy has gotta find Sagittarius and then collect his key," Natsu blew Leo a raspberry, "It ain't gonna be easy!"

"Of that I have no doubt," Leo just smirked past Natsu's warning and headed back to the edge of the roof. A gate opened before him and he stepped a leg through the pooling golden light, "But with you by her side, I believe you both stand a good chance at success."

"Oy-" Natsu growled at Leo's back, but was cut off when the lion disappeared, leaving him to his grumbles.

"Damn cat," He growled and flopped back down.

Natsu wasn't left long to think about Leo however as there was an explosion of cheering from within the guild and roars for alcohol as it was time to party!

Natsu's ears twitched at the sound and he raised his head a little, trying to listen in a little more closely to what had everyone so excited, only to smile involuntarily when he heard Lucy's name being mentioned. She must've had a good nap if Porlyusica had declared her fit enough to get out of bed already.

Good. He was tired of seeing her laid up. It just wasn't natural.

He settled back to relax, confident the guild would look after her while they celebrated, only to be interrupted a few minutes later by the last two voices he'd ever expected to hear up on the roof.

"Are you sure he's up here?" Gray asked as Erza showed him how to get out onto the roof.

"He's unlikely to be anywhere else." She replied reasonably, "He cannot go but so far due to his bond to Lucy, and has little interest in staying in the guild hall if he's not with her."

Natsu sat up, wondering just what those two could possibly want with him now, when Erza spotted him and beat him to the punch.

"Come Natsu." She said briskly, though there was a smile on her face, "We're celebrating Lucy being well enough to leave the infirmary. I'm sure you would not want to miss this, so we came to fetch you."

She gave him a kind look, "After all, Lucy wishes to see you."

"So? She can see me later," Natsu huffed, but felt heartened over the fact Lucy wanted to see him. It made a strange buzz work through his lungs and his lips quirked up.

"Like we're giving you the choice moron," Gray hoisted himself up. The ice mage stood up onto the roof, balancing there without a care. All the buttons on his shirt had been pulled open and it flapped in the breeze.

"Come on, don't be so... you," Gray scowled at the dragon and walked over to push the side of Natsu's head with his foot.

Growling, Natsu grabbed Gray's ankle and yanked forward, causing the ice mage to clatter to the roof in a heap of limbs. Natsu cackled at the sight of the dazed wizard, but before he could get into it with him, something stopped him.

A shadow.

Looming overhead.

The threat of death was felt so powerfully, Natsu shrank back in instinctual terror.

Erza stood before them, striking an intimidating figure.

"Natsu. Gray. We are going to the party now, and you will drink, be merry, and have fun," Her single eye, visible from the curtain of scarlet hair, flashed in warning.

"And you will behave, for Lucy's sake - or suffer punishment," Her gauntleted hand dropped to the sword hilt at her waist.

Natsu and Gray let out twin shrieks and clutched at one another in fear, before they realized what they were doing and flung themselves away. They scrubbed at their arms and chests in disgust, as if unable to believe they had done such a thing.

Still, Natsu was yanked forward by his bangs, and Gray by a handful of black hair as Erza bodily dragged them both to the side of the guild and threw them off the roof.

She hopped down after them with a pleasant smile and dusted her hands together.

"Good, now lets have fun!" She said cheerfully to the two groaning bodies.

"Are you sure she's not part demon?" Gray groaned at Natsu as he struggled to pick himself back up. Juvia was certain to fuss over his 'wounds' once he got back inside, but that didn't stop them from hurting now.

"Man... I don't think I wanna find out." Natsu croaked in reply, "Either thought is terrifying!"

"What was that?" Erza asked, an edge of danger under her calm tone, "Nothing at all!" Natsu and Gray chorused in terror, and sighed in relief when Erza smiled, "Good. Now come along!"

Neither one were given any choice in the matter as she moved behind them and began shoving them through the doors and into the guild.

Gajeel cackled at the pair as they passed, having heard most of what happened, but was immediately distracted from any taunting he might've done by Levy planting herself firmly in his lap and waving a plate of metal under his nose.

Lucy, on the other hand, smiled brightly at the sight of Natsu coming to join them. Even if it was a little coerced.

"Look Natsu!" She exclaimed happily, rotating her shoulder carefully, "Do you remember Chelia from Lamia Scale? She came over and helped heal things over! I'll be fit to work in just a few more days!"

"Huh," Natsu leaned forward, inspecting the area she had been injured with his own eyes. He nearly lost the bottom half of his jaw as he saw the healed over and fading scar on her shoulder. She was in great shape.

He hadn't seen healing magic like this outside of the sky dragons. Grandina had been the last he knew of, wherever she was.

"Whoa! That's incredible!" He gaped in awe and lightly prodded the area around what had once been a hurt spot with a gentle finger. He couldn't believe how nice it looked!

"I'm really grateful the Master sent in a call to Jura. Chelia was a life saver," Lucy sighed in relief and dropped a hand over her heart, "I was beginning to worry about rent."

Natsu grinned at the very Lucy-like answer and snorted, "It ain't due for a while. Quit thinkin' about work and just relax!"

He threw a single arm behind his head, dropping his finger just under her collarbone and lightly nudging her back into a chair. Healing or not, she was still on the mend and shouldn't be on her feet.

Lucy for her part, let herself get tumbled backwards, dazed by the shift in Natsu's hands. Her heart missed a distracting beat when his lazy grin filled his face and his arm folded behind his head, pulling the muscles in his bicep taut. A hot finger resting under her collarbone grounded her to Natsu, and her legs suddenly felt too close to jello for Lucy's liking.

She flopped back on the chair without barely putting up anything close to a fight.

Oh what a time to notice such odd things about her partner now.

Natsu, for his part, didn't think anything strange about Lucy's behavior. He just assumed she was tired, as she should be, and thought nothing more about it. Of course, it didn't help he was immediately distracted by Cana draping an arm around his shoulders with a wicked grin, "C'mon Natsu! Less talking, more drinking!"

It was a sentiment shared by everyone as there was a loud cheer of agreement, and before he quite realized what was happening he was getting dragged over to the alcohol to have a tankard of something shoved into his hands.

It was a situation he wasn't quite sure what to do with. If it had been a drinking contest he could've handled that like he handled the eating contest. But it wasn't. It was just the guild having a good time. Loudly. Like his old nest had during celebrations. Though it was different too.

He wasn't sure why exactly at first. Aside from numbers and species it was exactly the same kind of thing. Fairy Tail did everything loudly and openly. Just like a dragon's nest would. So why did this feel different?

"You look like you're bustin' your brains Salamander." Gajeel grunted as he thunked down beside him and smirked as he took a long pull of his own drink, "You ain't figured it out yet?"

His blank look must've been telling because the iron dragon just snorted, "Idiot. Difference is they don't care about what we are."

Natsu blinked at him, feeling like he was being slammed in the side of the head with one of Gajeel's demon logs. He opened his mouth to protest, before he remembered in the distant part of his brain that Gajeel was in a similar boat as him.

Granted, Gajeel was up in the north, his territory frozen and bordering the badlands Natsu had all but incinerated in his fits of rage.

But he was still near those dragons, forced to remember what it was like to have those poisonous words spat at him from across territories.

'Half Breed' Motherglare had snarled at Gajeel.

Gajeel had nothing to torment and destroy up in the North, but Natsu wondered if he had, if he would have destroyed it like he desired.

Natsu blinked as a lit match went sailing into his tankard by a laughing Bisca, distracting him as a whoosh of flames consumed Natsu's face and nearly burned off Max's eyebrows who was sitting nearby.

His mouth watered at the sight of the flames and he sunk his fangs into the cheerful flames, feeling his belly warm at their touch. He glanced at Gajeel, confused by the actions of the guild and the other dragon.

"Why not?" He asked after a moment, "We're different - it's not like we actually belong in this world with them. They're human, we're..."

"Orphans, just like most of the people here," Gajeel said roughly, jerking a thumb over to where Erza had slid into Jellal's arms in what looked like a sweet embrace.

Up until the music struck a fierce tempo and she broke away to throw him into a deadly, exuberant spin.

Natsu jolted at the observation Gajeel made, biting off a chunk of his tankard in his shock.

"Nothin' you didn't already know though," Gajeel smirked at the fire dragon. Natsu was sinking into his drink and sliding his grumpy glare to the side.

"You had plenty of chances to smash them through the years, but you never did," Gajeel's smirk widened at Natsu's reddening face, "You know more about these people than you'd like to admit."

"Just 'cause I didn't bother killing them doesn't mean anything!" Natsu huffed defensively around his blush.

"Like hell it don't." Gajeel snorted, and fixed the other drake with a look that wouldn't have been out of place on his father, "An' you know it runt."

Natsu's flush deepened at the assertion, but he couldn't actually deny Gajeel's claim without lying. And while he was many things...a liar was not one of them.

He had to admit, if only to himself, that Gajeel was right. He'd had many chances over the years to decimate, if not destroy, the guild. But he never had. He'd told himself it was because they were so much fun, which was true enough, but it wasn't the whole reason.

They'd reminded him, however unintentionally, of happier times. Times when he'd been part of a real nest and had been able to cuddle up to his father to eat fire while he was told bedtime stories or wrestle.

He'd seen the same happiness between the Fairy Tail members, and had never quite been able to bring himself to strike the killing blow because of it. Maybe they weren't dragons, but they were the best damned nest he'd ever laid eyes on, and he'd been reluctant to tear it up.

So he'd made them his treasure instead. He tormented them, played pranks on them, but never really hurt them the way he did others. Even if they didn't know their status-

He was starting to wonder if maybe they hadn't started to figure it out.

He was pulled out of his musings when Levy trotted up and tugged on Gajeel's arm, "C'mon Gajeel!" She grinned at him, "Let's dance!"

"What makes you think I dance shrimp?" Gajeel growled irritably even as he set his drink down and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet and out onto the floor.

Natsu jolted a bit at the sudden disappearance of Gajeel, turning to watch him go and hiding a smirk as Levy forced him out to the dancefloor. He laughed into his tankard and munched down on the flames remaining, slurping the entire thing loudly.

He didn't even see Erza rising up behind him like a messenger of death until an exhausted Jellal dropped down next to him, gave Natsu a tired look and said the most threatening words Natsu ever heard in his entire life.

"Your turn."

"My turn wha-"

His question was cut off with a shriek when Erza gripped onto his arm and dragged him onto the dancefloor.

"Come Natsu! It is time to introduce you into the spirited world of mortal dancing! I hope you are prepared!" Erza declared, her expression sharp and grip tight.

And the woman dragged him onto the dancefloor, without pause or mercy.

As terrifying as it was, Natsu couldn't help the occasional smile which broke out over his face, as he somehow ended up being pushed around throughout the guild and spoke to all his guild members.

And...

He had fun.

It was almost like he had a nest again.

-::-

"Is this really okay?" Gray spoke up, slamming the door of the magicmobile behind him. The frame of the car trembled under the force of his hand, but his full attention was on the man accompanying him, "You didn't have to come y'know. Anyone else in the guild would've been more than happy to tag along."

Jellal stared up at the prison he had once been confined in. A flicker of uncertainty flashed over his face before his expression smoothed into one of calmness. It didn't fool the ice mage any, but it wasn't his decision to make him leave.

"It's fine, Erza and the others needed to remain by Lucy's side," Jellal closed the door with more dignified quiet than Gray had. He brushed a hand down along the cloak shielding him from the dust kicked up by carriages and the vehicles.

"You're Lucy's teacher too, I'm sure she wouldn't have minded you being by her side either," Gray replied, not buying Jellal's excuse. But the blue haired man didn't respond, offering no further insight into his thoughts.

Gray sighed, deciding to let it go.

Jellal had not seen the prison's walls in a very long time. Not since his brief stint in a rogue, vigilante guild. After which he was released into Fairy Tail's probationary care a century back under direct and strict orders to closely monitor his magical use. At least until the case concerning his mental health during his string of crimes could be confirmed.

As such, Jellal had been cleared of most of his charges, even if the guilt of his crimes still weighed on him.

Looking at this prison and facing his demons again were something Jellal had to do.

Gray understood the feeling all too well.

His thoughts flashed to his brother, so tormented by the loss of Ur, and his sister, driven mad and into the arms of a dark guild.

Gray sighed, pushing those thoughts to the side as the two men walked into the prison. The past needed to stay right where it was.

"Erza and I did not have much time with the man before Makarov took over questioning. Whatever information we gleaned isn't enough. All we know is that the organization in Lucy's world is after her, and somehow have knowledge of this realm," Jellal finally broke the silence, "I want to find out more about who is behind all this."

Gray could recognize a distraction tactic when he saw one, but said nothing. It was the polite thing to do after all.

"So you think the two of us will be able to get more out of this guy than you and _Erza_?" Gray scoffed. If the man could hold out against Erza, Gray didn't think it was possible to even try to intimidate him into talking.

"She did us a favor by warming him up for us," Jellal answered as they passed the guards at the entrance. They were admitted when they revealed their guildmarks.

The inside was exactly as he remembered it, and it took all of his considerable willpower to keep from reacting to the sight of frog guards walking along with their 'control' staves. More like cattle prods. He still had vivid memories of being tortured with them by some of the more sadistic guards, and commanded to call them 'Master' in exchange for something as basic as food.

He hadn't cared then, but he most certainly did now. Kind of ironic in a way as he was now an upstanding and valued member of a light guild, and not a prisoner. But perhaps that was the difference between being free and knowing you were at the guard's mercy no matter what.

He shook off the thoughts with effort while Gray explained what prisoner they wanted to see and they were led inside. He could think about it later. With Erza and her much needed wisdom perhaps.

The thought of his fiery girlfriend brought a small smile to his lips, and helped brace him against the hated memories as they were led to the cell block their dimensional traveling prisoner was being kept in.

Unsurprisingly, he was looking a bit worse for the wear but relatively healthy. It seemed either the quality of guards had improved, or they'd been given strict instructions about their non-magical prisoner. Either way, it was clear he'd been well fed and had amenities appropriate for someone who could not inherently use magic.

He looked up at them warily as they approached, though Jellal thought he could see a disturbingly familiar gleam in his eyes. It was a look that had once been in his eyes, and in the eyes of Zeref's most devoted followers. Whoever this man worked for, whatever he believed in, he did so with zealous fever.

And that alone was terrifying.

"I was wondering when you would come pay me a visit." The man rasped with a macabre grin, "I'm so glad you did. Tell me, is the celestial mage alright? I've been worried."

Gray's eyes narrowed angrily, "And why would you be worried?" He demanded, "You shot her remember?"

The man shook his head, chuckling a little, "Not on purpose. I was aiming for the freak with pink hair, but she got in the way." He cocked his head, "So, is she alive and well?"

"She will live." Jellal replied tensely, "But I have to ask… why are you so interested in her? Magic is of little use in your world."

"Oh, but that's where you're wrong Mr. Wizard." The man replied with a smirk, "Magic is rare and difficult to tap, but it does exist. _He_ commands it. _He_ is interested in her magic. And what _he_ wants, _he_ gets."

"So you're answering to a master then, huh?" Gray drawled, a scowl twitching at the corners of his mouth, "You better start talkin' buddy. See, we're not really the patient type in Fairy Tail."

Despite the threatening words Gray spoke, the ice mage felt a strange chill slide over his skin and make his hair stand on end. The steady way the man stared at both Gray and Jellal was unnerving. All signs of earlier fear were gone, only a frightening sense of peace emanated from him.

It pissed Gray off.

"This isn't a visit for pleasure, we want you to tell us who you are working for and why you need Lucy!" Gray snapped.

The man laughed, a loud, reedy noise which reverberated off the walls of his cage.

"Don't we all?" He asked, a hazy smile on his face, "I am merely a foot soldier acting out on my lord's orders."

Jellal and Gray jumped back when the man let out a sudden, high pitched laugh. It was shrill, his eyes widening up at the ceiling and rolling to the back of his head. A smile, wide and terrifying froze on his face and his entire body trembled.

"I was waiting for you to come back for me!" He cried out in glee. Gray and Jellal exchanged worried looks with one another.

Cautious, Jellal ventured forward, "Why? What for?"

But the man didn't seem to hear him, laughter only growing in volume until flecks of foam began to gather around his mouth. His eyes were wild, but they sought out Jellal's with a madness he found infecting. Whether it was subconscious or not, something chilled in Jellal's heart and he took a step back.

"To tell you he is coming," The man's voice, while reedy before, now sounded hoarse and choked off.

Purple began to color his cheeks, a pallor overtaking his skin. Once more Jellal took a step towards him, his eyes wide on the man. His gaze swept over him before alarm overtook and he lunged for the cage.

"Jellal, what-!" Gray reached for his guildmate's arm, but the heavenly body mage shook him off.

"Poison! I don't know how he hid it on him, but he's dying!" Jellal shouted frantically. He slammed his fist against the magical barrier and twisted around, "Guards! _Guards_!"

Gray swore violently, unable to figure out how the prisoner had concealed it. But he was a stranger from another world. It wasn't impossible.

The man's voice became a harsh garble and his cheeks began to swell. His trembling body slumped against the side of the cage, a content smile on his dying face.

"He's coming," the man breathed, foam dripping from his lips, leaving long strands of drool soaking into his shirt.

With one last, rattling gasp, he fell silent. A smile on his face.

Gray and Jellal looked at one another, their expressions tight with worry. Something was coming on the horizon, and what was worse - it was coming from a world they couldn't see. Whenever it came, it would take them by surprise.

Whoever 'he' was - he had a dangerous connection with Lucy.

* * *

 **WOW GUYS! We got over 50 reviews! That's so incredible! Thanks for all the support! I'm actually in a rush to post this chapter since I definitely got ready to bed and then forgot I had to updaaate.**

 **So instead of review responses, here is a special sneak peak of the next chapter as a THAAAAANK YOUUUU!**

 **...SNEAK PEAK...  
**

 _Her eyes practically gleamed, "Oh an ancient city! Treasure hunting! How exciting!" Levy puffed her cheeks out as she thought about two dragons fighting over it._

 _"We're going to have to keep an eye on those two." She muttered and walked off in a distracted haze._

 _Lucy laughed at the expression on Levy's face. It was true though, Natsu was still as selfish and greedy as he was the first day she met him. But she guessed that was just a normal trait amongst dragons._

 _They weren't big on sharing._

 _"I'll see you in a bit," She called out to Levy and looked over the paper._

 _"The ancient city of the Nirvits, hm?"_

 ** _SEE YA IN TWO DAYS!_**


	26. Tuesdays with Morrie

_**Act 2**_

* * *

26

 _ **Tuesdays with Morrie**_

" _This is part of what a family is about, not just love. It's knowing that your family will be there watching out for you. Nothing else will give you that. Not money. Not fame. Not work."_

― Mitch Albom _,_ _ **Tuesdays with Morrie**_

* * *

"Ow son of a b-!"

" _Language_ Natsu!"

"Does he need to be punished princess?"

"No he does not!" Natsu's frantic shout exclaimed from where Lucy had a whip tightly corded around his wrist. He remained where he was, kneeling in a crouch before Lucy and her new spirit.

They were in the middle of training Lucy how to use her newest weapon. One Natsu had gone out of his way to purchase for her when she was back on her feet again. It was a gift that Lucy accepted gratefully, even if she demanded to see his receipt to ensure he hadn't stolen it.

Now he had quite a few scratches decorating his cheeks and arms from where Lucy had managed to nick him with the whip. It turned out she was a very quick study with it, even if she hadn't been using it for more than a couple of weeks.

"I dunno Virgo," Lucy teased, holding onto the whip firmly so it stretched out taut between her and the dragon, "He has quite the mouth on him doesn't he? Especially since I have him on the ropes!"

"Yes princess," Virgo nodded, "Although I would urge you to be cautious."

Confused, Lucy tilted her head to look at her spirit, "What? Why?"

Suddenly the mage found herself being yanked forward, getting dragged directly into the hot arms of her fiercely grinning dragon. His calloused hand closed around her throat, gripping lightly, her back pressed flush against his chest and his arm banding her limbs down to her sides.

"Because I'm stronger than you," Natsu's hot breath grazed against the back of her ear, eliciting a shivering response to slide down her spine. The shift of his growl against her skin, the graze of his mouth against the outer shell of her ear, and the deep tenor of his purr. It made her skin feel electrified.

Perhaps it was impure, but her thoughts plummeted straight into the gutter.

Natsu was just so _close_.

"W-what?" Lucy stammered, his smoky scent invading her senses and clinging to her. The soft material of his scarf brushed against the back of her neck, only a minor distraction from the feel of their bodies pressing tightly together. With every breath they took, she could feel the contractions of Natsu's hard muscles flexing, pressing against her and-

Oh no. No. NO.

She was _not_ attracted to Natsu.

She was not attracted to the handsome dragon with his hands all over her.

She really was not.

"Need me to spell it out for you?" Natsu's voice purred.

Before she knew it, Lucy was being turned physically in Natsu's arms until she was face to face with the dragon.

And then he smiled. Something sunny. It was a cheerful grin of happiness that reached all the way up to his bright, green eyes. The sight of which made her heart ache and melt into the slots of her ribcage.

"I win!" He crowed in excitement.

Lucy gawked at him, trying to wrap her mind around his oblivious touches, the sweetness in his smile, and the absolute radiance burning off him.

Oh.

One look at that happy smile and she knew.

She _was_ attracted to her stupid dragon.

"Wanna try again Luce?" Natsu asked, his grin turning distinctly lopsided. Slowly he unwrapped the coiled whip from around his forearm, slanting a sly, mischievous look at her.

Her heart thumped when they both stood up, his eyes dark and reaching out for her. There was something there.

Something had been there between them for a while. But Lucy didn't know what it was. She didn't think even Natsu knew. She cleared her throat and put some space between them.

"Would you two like to be alone so you may share another passionate embrace?" Virgo asked, her voice flat, but a small hint of mirth behind her impassive gaze.

Lucy nearly jumped out of her skin at the teasing, and at the way Virgo rolled her tongue as she said it.

"What! No! No more training today! I think that's more than enough thank you!"

-::-

Lucy hummed thoughtfully as she eyed the request board. It was her turn to pick, but she wasn't seeing one that just jumped out and grabbed her.

Ordinarily, she would go for a bandit cleanup or something similar to let Natsu run off his pent up energy, but with her shoulder still a bit tender she wasn't up to something that could see her potentially get beat up.

She wasn't eager to undo all of Chelia's hard work.

"Having trouble picking Lu?" Levy asked as she moved up to join her, noticeably lacking her usual shadows.

"Yeah..." Lucy sighed, "I just don't see one that jumps out at me." She glanced at Levy curiously, "Where are Jet and Droy?"

"They decided to go on a job without me." Levy replied, the faint hurt in her voice audible, "They said something about proving they were just as good as Gajeel. I hope they're okay..."

Lucy winced a little, not envying Levy's love square one bit. She knew her friend didn't do anything to encourage the other two, and only saw them as friends, but that didn't seem to slow down Jet or Droy one bit. She just hoped that when Levy finally formally announced her choice team Shadowgear didn't split.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Was all she said instead, and suddenly brightened, "Hey, why don't we go on a job together?" She suggested, "Erza's on a job with Jellal and Gray's on one with Juvia, so Natsu and I are kind of in the same boat. We could even bring Gajeel and make it a quartet!"

Levy's entire expression lit up at the suggestion, "That's a great idea Lu! And I know just the one!" She grinned and pulled out a flyer, "I was going to suggest this one to the boys originally... It's an artifact hunting and translation job!"

Lucy scanned through it and grinned back, "Oh this is perfect! I bet Grandpa Cross would be able to help with this if we get stuck, and Natsu and Gajeel would be great at digging out artifacts."

Maybe. As long as they didn't go overboard.

Lucy, however, was confident that between the two of them they could rein them in. At least a little.

"Oh that sounds fantastic!" Levy said enthusiastically. She clapped her hands together and grinned at Lucy, "Why don't you go grab your stuff and we can meet back here at the guild in about an hour?"

Her eyes practically gleamed, "Oh an ancient city! Treasure hunting! How exciting!" Levy puffed her cheeks out as she thought about two dragons fighting over it.

"We're going to have to keep an eye on those two." She muttered and walked off in a distracted haze.

Lucy laughed at the expression on Levy's face. It was true though, Natsu was still as selfish and greedy as he was the first day she met him. But she guessed that was just a normal trait amongst dragons.

They weren't big on sharing.

"I'll see you in a bit," She called out to Levy and looked over the paper.

"The ancient city of the Nirvits, hm?" Lucy tapped a finger against her chin as she walked off to find Natsu out of the guild.

The dragon was sprawled out under a tree, snoring noisily, mouth hanging wide open. His shirt had ridden up his waist, exposing his stomach to the air as a leg kicked out crookedly.

He was such a messy sleeper.

"Hey, Natsu," Lucy nudged his side with her toe, watching him roll over onto his belly. Now he was drooling on his arm, "Wake up. Come on you lazy lizard, get up."

"Who're you callin' a lizard!" Natsu half mumbled half shouted as he jerked up from his arm, but was clearly far from awake by the way he blinked sleepily at her and then started to sink back into his sound sleep.

"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed, "Get up! We have a job!"

That, it seemed, finally got his attention as when he cracked his eyes open there was actual sense in them, and he yawned as he stretched, "What kinda job?" He asked, already looking bored by whatever Lucy had picked.

"We're teaming up with Levy and Gajeel to help excavate and translate an ancient city!" Lucy grinned triumphantly, "It seems some of their artifacts can't be translated without magic, and they're not sure what else around might be magical in nature."

Natsu had been on the verge of complaining about how boring it sounded when Lucy's words actually penetrated. Treasure hunting? They were actually going treasure hunting?

He leapt to his feet, suddenly completely awake, "Yeah! Let's go treasure hunting!" He exclaimed, "I'm all fired up now!"

Lucy had just enough time to realize she should be wary of the manic gleam in his eyes as he grabbed her and took off at top speed, "C'mon Luce! We gotta get packed!"

Lucy heaved a mental sigh as she was dragged along. Somehow she doubted he'd actually heard her mention Levy and Gajeel. Or at least not Gajeel.

She had a feeling he would be sulking again once he found out.

Sure enough, Natsu's enthusiasm plummeted the instant he caught sight of Levy and Gajeel. Specifically the latter. He growled at the sight of the iron dragon, an action which was promptly reflected back at him. Lucy sighed as they edged around one another, creeping into one another's faces.

If they kept this up, it was going to end in a trip filled with aggravation. Lucy tugged firmly on one of Natsu's ears while Levy attempted to do the same to Gajeel but came up too short.

"They're partnering up with us on this job Natsu!" Lucy gave him an impatient glare, "So behave!"

"What!" He protested, a flush rising to his cheeks as he wrestled his ear from her pinching grasp, "No way! I'm not working with him!"

Lucy grasped his head in both hands, startling the dragon into a moment of stillness. That was all Lucy needed to drag his face down into hers, their foreheads almost bumping together. Natsu's eyes widened at the bold move.

Usually the lack of personal space was his attack method.

Maybe he was rubbing off on her.

His heart flipped traitorously as he met those large brown eyes. Giving him such a pouty look, he almost thought it was sorta endearing. Sorta. Natsu coughed, feeling some of his resolve not to work with Gajeel weaken before she even opened her mouth.

"I'm working with Levy, and she's working with Gajeel, which means you're working with him too!" Lucy poked him on the chin, making his mouth drop open in surprise. He swallowed a bit at her fierce look, protests on his tongue.

"Unless you wanna get dragged behind us!" Lucy bent away and crossed her arms. Natsu followed the motion with his eyes, and felt himself flush as it had the effect of emphasizing her already generous chest.

He'd always been peripherally aware of Lucy's beauty as a whole, but for some reason this time, of all the times he'd looked at her, had him suddenly painfully aware of just how lovely her chest really was, and he had to bite back the absurd urge to reach out and find out if it was as soft and squishy as it looked.

Just the thought had him hastily tearing his eyes away from the display, though he did so with a reluctance that surprised him, and he crossed his own arms huffily, "Fine!" He growled, more out of principle than anything.

Working with Gajeel would be just as much of a pain in the ass as working with the snowcone, but his brain was still tripping over the view Lucy had inadvertently given him and his weird reaction to it, so he wasn't up to arguing about it anymore.

Seriously, what the hell was wrong with him? He'd never cared about women, pretty or not, before and couldn't understand why he was suddenly paying so much attention to Lucy's assets. It was annoying.

Even more annoying was the broad, knowing, smirk curling over Gajeel's stupid face.

The iron dragon looked like he'd just swallowed the biggest, juiciest, bit of meat he'd ever tasted, and was loving every minute of it. He was sure the big drake had spotted his momentary distraction and was going to try and tease him about it. Jerk.

He flashed his fangs and growled at Gajeel, which had that stupid grin widening even more, but otherwise kept his mouth shut. He'd ignore Gajeel if Gajeel left him alone. Otherwise all bets were off.

Luckily the man seemed more content with smirking than actually goading Natsu - which had the exact opposite effect. Natsu was close to lunging at the other dragon when he felt a soft touch on the back of his arm.

It was so gentle, he almost didn't notice it at first.

Natsu swallowed hard in confusion at the strange rush of warmth that ran through him when he saw Lucy's hand, small and slender against his skin.

"We're going to have a lot of fun!" Lucy promised him, with a smile so wide Natsu almost believed it. Almost.

As if any time spent with Gajeel could be fun.

"Yeah. Okay," disbelief practically dripped from his voice, but he made no further arguments.

Especially not when Gajeel flashed Natsu a superior smirk and dropped onto all fours.

His body trembled, like a wave was being passed straight through him. Skin hardened, jagged plates of metal taking shape on his arms as his body began to shift form.

Soon, they had a massive dragon sitting before them, red eyes glaring shrewdly down at them. A fangy smile tore over Gajeel's face, his odd laughter huffing out from between a forked tongue and needle-sharp fangs.

"You all look so tiny from here, especially you," Gajeel's massive head swung down to Levy. His snout pushed lightly into her stomach, causing her to squeak and flop forward on top of the bridge between his eyes.

"Gajeel!" Levy shrieked in protest.

"Gihi!"

The dragon lifted his head, carefully allowing Levy enough time to recover. He reached out, collecting Levy securely in a giant, metal claw. Then he favored Natsu and Lucy a look, clearly telling them 'good luck.'

Natsu just snorted, hooking an arm around Lucy and pushing enough magic into his jump so he could leap up onto Gajeel's back. Lucy shrieked the whole way up, having been taken by surprise from Natsu's sudden movements.

"What's the big idea?" She protested, "I'm not a sack of potatoes!"

"I know," Natsu eyed her with some disappointment. He flopped down between two of Gajeel's spines. His arm was still around Lucy as he dragged her into his lap like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"If you were a sack of potatoes, at least you'd be delicious," Natsu muttered, looking offended by the very thought that he was holding onto her instead of said food.

Lucy shot him an equally offended look, "Well excuse me for being a person and not more food for you to stuff you face with!" She snapped just as Gajeel spread his wings and started flapping.

Lucy squeaked at the sudden lurch, having been too distracted with growling at Natsu to realize Gajeel was about to take off, and reflexively tightened her grip on Natsu.

"Relax would ya?" Natsu's voice purred into her ear, almost huskily, as he curled his arms securely around her and held her close, "I won't let you fall."

Lucy flushed a bit at the sound of it and stared at him in surprise, wondering what had brought it on so suddenly, and was treated to the sight of Natsu grinning toothily at her. Her heart promptly pulled a backflip and then started pounding. It had to be illegal for someone to look that good just by grinning and talking like that. Even if it wasn't intentional.

Now that she was actually looking it was clear his options were purr in her ear or shout over the wind. She was grateful he'd chosen the former option.

Not that it helped her blood pressure or heart rate any.

Did Natsu even know how he was coming across? Probably not.

If he did, he wouldn't be holding her so close. His arms slid along her sides and hooked around her shoulders. He dropped his chin onto her shoulder, his eyes fixated on the horizon.

The bite of the air this high was still cold, but like before, Lucy could feel warmth from Natsu saturating into her bones. She relaxed into his hold, unable to stop how rapidly her heart was beating.

How silly could she be?

Still, his touch was surprisingly gentle. So different from how it had been all that time ago when they first met. Her eyes fastened onto the scarf wrapped around his neck, twisting a bit so she could curl more comfortably on her side.

It was strange to be sitting in Natsu's lap, but she couldn't deny it was more than likely one of the safest places in the world.

She sank her fingers into his shirt and pillowed her head close to him in the scarf. It wasn't like she had anywhere else to go so she might as well get comfortable.

There was almost a clean gleam to his scarf now. It wasn't quite white, but it was certainly much cleaner than it had been before. When she first met Natsu, it was almost black, torn in places and badly tattered. It was dark like the shadows in his eyes and the bitter hatred in his sharp smile.

But now it looked clean. There were still some holes in the fabric, but it looked like many of the more jagged holes were stitched together again.

 _'I won't let you fall.'_

Natsu, for his part, had decided that even if a sack of potatoes would be tastier to hold it wouldn't be a nice.

Lucy was soft in all the right places and tucked against him like they were pieces from the jigsaw puzzle he'd played with as a hatchling. They just seemed to fit perfectly, and there was a growing part of him that really liked that.

He tried not to dwell on it too much though. They were passing through portions of his territory he hadn't laid eyes on since his binding, and as much as he liked holding Lucy his eyes were sharply scanning the horizon, and everything else, for danger.

He didn't doubt that interlopers were trying to muscle in on his territory while he was indisposed, and couldn't help looking for them.

Human form or not he would beat anyone who dared into a pulp.

Fortunately, or unfortunately as the case may be, he didn't spot any from the time Gajeel took off to the time he very carefully landed near the archaeological dig near the Nirvits abandoned city.

That brought Natsu's attention pointedly back to the lovely blond in his lap and he looked down at her, "Looks like we're here!" He grinned brightly at her and carefully stood up with her still cradled in his arms, "That wasn't so bad was it?"

"No..." Lucy started only to yelp again as Natsu leapt cleanly off Gajeel's back and onto the ground.

"Man you do a lot of screaming," Natsu grumbled but set her down without any further complaint. He glanced up at Gajeel, watching as he deposited Levy onto the ground. Not a blue hair out of place.

Lucy ran fussy fingers through her windswept hair, trying to tame the mess Gajeel made with his flying.

She sighed and sunk her head down, "Aw man..." She complained.

Natsu just laughed, shaking his messy bangs out of his eyes, "Ah come on Lucy! It's not so bad!"

He kind of liked how messed up it was on her. Not as neat, like a dragon rider.

As if such things even existed.

Natsu snorted at the thought and crammed his hands in his pockets, eagerly heading towards the ruins, "Come on metal head!" He barked.

A low rumbling came from Gajeel, his snarls sounding like rolling thunder, quelling down into the growls of a distant storm instead.

They lessened as he transformed down, leaning his arm on the top of Levy's head like an armrest, "Watch it flame brain, or I'll leave you behind when I go flying back!"

"And leave Lucy?" Natsu snapped back at him, looking smugly superior, "Fat chance of that happening! Levy would dump your ass out of the guild!" He blew a raspberry at the metal dragon.

"Come on you two," Levy wrapped her arms around Gajeel's middle to try and tug the big drake away from Natsu and the fight he was practically inviting.

"Levy's right," Lucy caught Natsu's arm, "You want to find the treasure don't you?" She goaded.

That had the desired effect.

However, they'd no sooner gotten halfway to the dig site when Natsu picked up the distinctive sound of a child's heart broken tears.

He paused and looked around alertly, concern for why a hatchling would be out here in the middle of nowhere blooming in his chest. He'd never admit it, but he'd always had a soft spot for hatchlings, and had never been able to bear the sound of ones tears. Not since...

He shook the thought off and moved determinedly towards the sound.

"Natsu?" Lucy asked in mingled exasperation and confusion, "What are you doing? The dig is that way."

"Hold on a sec." Natsu replied almost absently, "I heard something."

Lucy blinked at the almost serious tone and followed after him, not noticing Gajeel's own eyes widening behind her, "What is it?" She asked only to gasp as she and Natsu rounded a tree to discover a little blue haired girl in tattered clothes, and with dirt all over her, crying her eyes out.

Lucy's heart instantly melted at the sight, "Aw, you poor thing!" She cooed, startling the girl who cringed back.

"No! Stay back! Don't hurt me!"

That panic filled cry absolutely shattered Lucy's heart.

She crouched down where she was, trying to make herself less threatening, and smiled gently, "It's alright." She murmured soothingly, ignoring the sound of Levy and Gajeel joining them, "No one's going to hurt you. I promise."

"No! You're lying!" The girl cried in distress, pressing further back against the tree, a tiny white kitten clutched protectively in her arms, "Th-they said I was a f-freak, and..." Fresh tears welled in her eyes.

"They pushed you outta the nest." Natsu murmured lowly, almost growling, but still loud enough to cut across the child's tears.

Lucy looked up at Natsu in surprise, "She's like you and Gajeel?"

Natsu's fists clenched tightly, his rage welling up in him at the sight of another hatchling exactly like him, but he managed to nod anyway, "Yeah."

The girl stared at them, holding her kitten close. The little furry thing hissed at them with intelligent eyes, the fur on its back standing on end.

"Begone you filthy people! Leave poor Wendy alone!" The feline spoke in a rich voice, causing Lucy to rear back in shock, momentarily taken aback. Never before had she seen a cat speak before.

Besides Leo.

But she doubted that counted.

"Uhm," She gaped at her but looked helplessly over at Natsu and Gajeel, who both wore similar expressions of bitterness on their faces.

"We ain't gonna hurt her," Gajeel spoke up, leaning forward and dropping a heavy hand on the little girl's head, "Name is Wendy, huh? You smell like the wind and breeze."

Wendy looked up at the drake with puffy eyes, a bottom lip trembling with uncertainty. It was clear to Natsu she was still very young. She might not have even unlocked her ability to transform fully yet.

Along with the scent of wind and breeze, was that distinct hint of humanity. She was like them. A human taken in by a dragon and turned into one.

But thanks to the typical dragon elitism, that meant she was pushed from her nest too. And at such a young age.

"Are you a sky dragon?" Natsu asked her, trying not to let the full force of his rage show in his face. Last thing he wanted to do was frighten the girl. Or her angry little cat.

"Any chance you know a dragon named Grandina?" He asked.

All at once, Wendy's face seemed to transform. Into one of joy, before abruptly one of grief. Fat tears rolled down her cheeks, and Natsu reeled back at the sight of her fresh sadness.

"Way to go dumbass, you made her cry again," Gajeel muttered.

"You absolute cretin!" The cat snarled, wiggling from Wendy's shaking arms, "Grandina was the girl's mother and she has just recently passed! How dare you, bringing up such bad memories for her!"

"Carla..." Wendy murmured.

Natsu growled at the feisty cat but gave Wendy an apologetic look, "I'm sorry. I didn't know. But my dad is Igneel, he knew Grandina a long time ago."

Wendy's eyes widened in shock, "You're the Fire Prince?" She whispered, hardly able to believe her ears, and snuggled Carla closer, "Grandina told me stories about your dad." She murmured, "About how he was a great drake, and how much he loved his son." She shifted a bit awkwardly, "She said it was what inspired her to adopt me. I always wanted to meet you. So I could thank you…"

Natsu stared at the hatchling dumbfoundedly, "I...you...what? Me?"

He couldn't remember the last time he'd had someone who _wanted_ to meet him. To _thank_ him for anything. Not like this anyway. Not even Lucy had done that.

He shifted a little uncomfortably as Lucy stood back up, red dusting his cheeks, "You know, I didn't have anything to do with Igneel picking me." He muttered in embarrassement that had Lucy giggling a little and earned her a sulky pout that didn't seem to have much effect.

"Maybe you didn't." The maddening blond pointed out with a broad grin, "But it's because of you that Wendy was adopted."

"And then pushed outta her nest." Gajeel spoke up, earning himself an elbow in the side from Levy for the reminder and a hissed, "Be nice!"

Lucy shook her head a little, "You know, the more I hear about dragons the more I think your parents were the only rational ones out of the whole species. Surely there are some nests somewhere out there that don't push kids out just because they're adopted humans?"

"If there are, I ain't seen one." Gajeel grunted, giving Levy a hairy look when she elbowed him again, "You tryin' to tenderize your elbow shrimp?" He grumbled.

"I'm _trying_ to get you to stop being such an inconsiderate jerk!" Levy growled, grabbing hold of his hair since she couldn't reach his ear.

Wendy, meanwhile, was watching the byplay with confused interest. She could tell that the two ladies with the drakes, she thought they were drakes anyway, were human, but they all acted like nestmates. Maybe…?

"A-are you a nest?!" She blurted, wild hope rising in her, and cringed a little when all eyes turned to her again, "I-I mean...c-could I join?" She whimpered hopefully.

Natsu could have been knocked over with a feather at the wild question and rawness on the girl's face. He felt like his tongue was stuck on the roof of his mouth. A nest?

Them?

This girl had gotten the wrong idea about them, and his mouth hung open.

"Oh," Levy blinked, glancing up at Gajeel who looked equally as dumbstruck. They were both drakes and owned their own territories. How would that even work if they were to form a nest?

Gajeel was only permitted into Natsu's territory through extremely grudging means. She didn't think Natsu would kick Wendy out though. She was just a child after all, and he'd already showed how much of a bleeding heart he had for kids.

"A nest?" Natsu asked stiffly, as if faint.

"Me and Ga-" Natsu looked a little green in the fact at the thought.

"Sorry girlie, we ain't a nest," Gajeel grunted a bit gruffly at Wendy, looking a little uncomfortable saying no to the girl who looked so desperate for a shred of hope.

It was like everything in Wendy deflated at once at the awkward response, and her eyes welled with fresh tears. She nodded sadly and hunched her shoulders as if drawing into herself.

"O-oh, I-it's okay..." She looked positively heartbroken, hiccupping her words, "I-I w-would be a bu-burden anyway."

Lucy whirled on the two dragons, who took a terrified step back away from her.

"Look at you two! You made her cry!" Lucy set angry hands on her hips, leaning towards them with a steely glint in her eyes, "You two need to quit being macho for a change! Would it really kill you two if you guys became a nest?"

Natsu squinted over at Gajeel, but slanted his eyes back to the crying girl. He hated to see someone cry like this. For the same reasons he was pushed out, but... with no one to help him.

How could he possibly turn her away?

Gajeel was giving him an unsure look, his thoughts reflecting the same as Natsu.

At once they both sighed, silently reaching some sort of agreement neither dared to voice out.

A new nest... With the three of them? Could it even work?

Natsu swallowed and nodded stiffly to Gajeel, earning himself a genuine look of surprise.

"I guess... we can make a new nest," Natsu allowed and held out a hand to Wendy, "It never occurred to us before because I can't stand metal-heads face over here, but I have a feeling you'll be much nicer to have around than him."

"What's it gonna be girlie?" Gajeel asked her, crossing his arms over a broad chest, "Wanna give it a shot?"

Wendy stared at them, and the blond who had scolded them, in shock before a wide, bright, hopeful smile began to light up her face, "Really? You mean it?!" She exclaimed.

Both dragons nodded at her and she squealed happily as she scrambled to her feet, carefully set Carla down, and rushed over to launch herself at Natsu.

The surprised drake stared down at the new hatchling, not used to being hugged so exuberantly anymore, and felt something within him shift and then loosen as he hesitantly wrapped his arms around her as well.

A _nest_.

Even if he had to share it with the metal head it was still a _nest_.

And that... felt surprisingly good.

He growled a little playfully as he hoisted Wendy up onto his hip and pressed his forehead against hers, breathing in her scent and imprinting it into his memory. Nest. She was his new nestmate.

He was her big brother now, and he would be damned if he let her get hurt again.

He didn't even growl as Gajeel joined them, though he couldn't resist playfully snapping a little. Something the bigger drake responded to by leaning heavily on his shoulder like he sometimes did Levy's head.

Which, naturally, Natsu ducked out of, cackling when he overbalanced and fell.

Lucy rolled her eyes at their antics and stepped forward with a smile, "Well now that that's settled, it's nice to meet you Wendy. I'm Lucy and this is Levy."

"Pleasure to meet you!" Wendy chirped brightly, looking considerably happier than she had two minutes ago. She wiggled out of Natsu's hold so she could trot back over to Carla and gather her meager possessions.

"So what now?" She asked eagerly, "Carla and I were waiting on Pantherlily to get back when you came up..."

"Who's Pantherlily?" Lucy asked curiously only to yelp in surprise when a very tall, very muscular, bipedal cat man stepped out of the bushes.

" _I'm_ Pantherlily." He growled.

"Holy-!" Natsu yelped at the sight of him and the massive sword strapped onto his back. His jaw hung open and he jerked his finger through the air, "He's huge!"

"Natsu," Lucy elbowed him in the gut, causing all the air to rush out of his lungs as he doubled over, "Manners!"

"What did I do?" Natsu whimpered.

His whines went ignored as Pantherlily nodded in greeting to them, holding a wild bird under his meaty arm and a striped egg in the other.

"I see you found some friends Wendy, that is good," He gave them critical looks, "Who are they?"

Wendy jumped up onto the balls of her feet, smiling broadly at them all.

"This is my new nest Lily," She waved at them and introduced everyone in turn, "I think we're going to be happy with them, right Carla?"

The feline huffed outright at that, but her expression softened and she curled into Wendy's arms, "I suppose."

Ignoring the haughty comment, Lily reached forward and dropped the striped, blue egg into Wendy's arms, "I found it."

"The poor thing." Wendy cooed sadly, curling her other arm around the egg protectively, and smiled, "He can join our nest too!"

Lily chuckled a little and ruffled Wendy's hair, "Exceed don't have nests like you do, but I'm sure he'll be a good friend when he hatches. Which should be any day now."

"I'm sorry," Lucy interrupted, "I'm confused. What's an Exceed?"

Lily looked over at her curiously, "That's what my kind call themselves." He explained, "We're a bit like dragons in that we're magical and long lived, but most Exceed aren't very powerful and keep to themselves so we're not often seen."

He nodded to the egg, "That's an Exceed egg. I found it in an abandoned farmhouse while I was out hunting and brought it back. From the looks of things something attacked the parents not long ago."

"Wow! It's so cool looking!" Natsu exclaimed excitedly, examining the blue and white egg closely, "Like a dragon egg!"

Lucy rolled her eyes at his reaction and crossed her arms, "Well, why don't you look after it then Natsu?" She drawled, "Since you're a fire dragon your body temperature alone should keep it nice and warm."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea!" Wendy agreed, her eyes bright as she all but shoved the egg into Natsu's clumsy hands. He just barely managed to catch it before it became scrambled eggs on the ground.

"I hatched Carla here, but it took a really long time because I couldn't keep her very warm," Wendy curled her kitten closer to her.

The huffy cat looked to tolerate it, but appeared slightly smug over the attention.

Natsu blinked and slowly curled the egg closer to him, "Like... this?" He asked, raising his body temperature enough to feel a light tapping against his skin.

An excited smile broke over his face and he gasped, "Whoa!"

Lucy laughed at Natsu's eagerness and shook her head, "Alright then, come on, hang on tight to that thing. And don't drop it!"

She gave Natu a very firm look as he opened up the zipper on his shirt, stuffed the whole egg into it, and then pulled it up to his neck.

"There! It'll be nice and safe in there!" He lightly patted his stomach where the base of the egg was nestled.

Levy was busy chatting with Lily about the exceeds, while Gajeel put Wendy on his shoulders to carry her while they marched off to begin their job as a unit.

Natsu dropped a hand on the egg he was protecting and set his other somewhere between Lucy's shoulder blades as she walked side by side with him.

Not a unit..

A nest.

* * *

 **SAHDHFADFHA I NEED TO THROW ATTENTION TO ALL THE LOVELY ART WE HAVE GOTTEN! I AM CRY. I ALLOWED THE FOG OF SLEEP TO CLOUD MY MIND AND FORGET TO GIVE THE LOOOOVELY TAILFAIL ALL THE LOVE FOR ART THEY GAVE US!** So here you are! tailfailXtumblrXcom/post/132026141590/some-doodles-for-the-latest-chapter-from-parallels (JUST REPLACE THE X's WITH PERIODS)

 _ **So many lovely questions this time around. Lets see if I can help you all out!**_

 _ **CrimsonLightKey** \- Oh yeah some of these chapters are super long. Hope you enjoyed this update! **Bluebirdeyes - .3 -** HAHAHAHAH If I answer this aging question again I'm gonna choke on my own tongue. :'D Lucy is a mage. She ages like a mage. :* Zeref is a fun and popular theory though. - **Mo0nyMoon** \- Natsu will never stop being selfish and greedy. That's human nature fufufu. **OgaxHilda -** ;D Yes. Yes she is coming. THERE YOU ALL GO. WENDY. *blows kisses* **-** **Animallover -** I hope this satisfied allll your cravings - **Snavej -** YEAH YOU GOT WENDY. - **the-clumsy-one - shvartzit -** ohhhh yes. We are definite fans of Cobra. Yes. We have over 60 chapters written in this fic. We're currently writing the final scenes now. - **NonTimetisMessor -** You will have to find out hahaha - **panicatthediscofreak7 -** That is a wise decision - **fanficlove2014 -** You have some interesting theories. I would hang onto them. - **AJDrakes -** Oh it's not that we write fast, it's that we've stocked up on a ton of chapters. Hahaha - **Guest -** Oh Saggy will not appear for a while yet. - **Train 99 -** Wow if we got over 2000 reviews I would be SUPER impressed! - **Compucles -** Yep. Pretty much. All the villains are total drama queens.I hope you got your answer! - **SakuraPetal91 -** **Princessatj -** Everyone seems to feel the same way about him tbh. - **Angela-the-neko -** We all have our crosses. But omg no, thank you so much! - **Compucles (x2) -** I dunno, Virgo has her benefits too yanno - **Twishadowhunter - The-Rosette-Wolf** \- Thank you so much! *blows kisses* And yeah, here's the next chapter! - **Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Sara lovelymusic -** omg, no none of the 12 will be making an appearance otherwise this fic would be 1000 chapters long. **Dark-Angel-of-Wicked-Chaos17 - Dragodden - ThatOneExoticPotato** -which oneshot/twoshot are you referring to? The Gajeel one? Or my side BedBugs one? Because the Gajevy one is up TONIGHT! - **rrrrRANDOMmm -** thank youuuu - **Celtika82 - guest account -** Thanks! Kytrin and I work really hard! - **Little Red -** Well that's a really fun theory! - **wishyouweremedontya -** Hahaha nah the FT world is pretty barbaric too. I dunno where it would be honestly. It used to be on a giant walking-squid thing. So your guess is as good as mine - **thewritersheart -** Welcome to the current chapter waiting game hell! Hahaha, I saw that you blew through the last couple of chapters. Now the waiting begins. Good luck! - **equastar - kirby42280 -** I will say NOTHING - **Searching for my Rushmore -** Yes Natsu carries the key with him always. Natsu has NOOOO idea where Sagittarius' key is. N-O-N-E. - **eternalstarrlight -** WHY'S IT GOTTA BE A DUDE? MAYBE THE EVIL PERSON IS A CHICK THAT LIKES TO CALL HERSELF 'LORD', I dunno. Hahaha. Your guess is as good as anyone elses. Oh yeah. Natsu can go pretty far from Lucy now. Innit nice? Hahaha, You get all your reactions today! - **Amelia Loves Anime -** YOU MUST FIND OUT!  
_

 ** _Okay I hope I answered all of those to the best of my ability!_**

 ** _Don't FORGET, the Gajevy companion fic for this story begins TOOOOONIGHT! It's called:_** _Perpendicular_

 _(Yeah. I think I'm hilarious.)_


	27. King Solomon's Mines

**_Act 2_**

* * *

 ** _27_**

 ** _King Solomon's Mines_**

 _"...for women bring trouble as surely as night follows day..." **  
**_― H. Rider Haggard, _ **King Solomon's Mines**_

* * *

 **ATTENTION!**

At Mslead's request I, Kytrin, will be addressing several questions we've seen repeatedly over the course of the story so far.

1\. **What is your update schedule?** We update every 2 days following the format of post day, read day, read day, post day, etc. This is to give folks a chance to read and review. It is not negotiable unless we decide to be generous on our own.

2\. **How does aging work?** As we have said before, magic causes the aging to slow down. This means Dragons, Demons, Wizards, and Exceed all have the same general lifespan! To be extra clear, in this story Natsu will not outlive Lucy, and Lucy will not outlive Natsu. Apply to all other pairings.

3\. **Why are some names spelled wrong?** Because I watch the Funimation dub version of the anime (or their sub version that hasn't been translated yet), and Mslead likes their spellings of those names. We know they don't match the wiki, but those are the spellings we've chosen and we will be sticking with them.

This is the last time we will answer these questions. We love you guys to pieces, but please ask us new questions. We have over 30 more chapters plus an epilogue left, so I'm certain you'll have plenty before the end! Thanks!

* * *

Wendy giggled happily as she lifted an ancient bronze pot out of the dirt and brushed it off, "This is fun isn't it Carla?" She smiled happily at her kitten.

"You're getting all dirty." Carla huffed, but her expression immediately softened at Wendy's happy smile, "But I suppose it is a little fun yes."

The archaeologists had been surprised to discover more people than they'd expected arriving for the job, but Wendy and the Exceed had been welcomed with open arms even though they weren't official Fairy Tail members. It was a novel experience for her, and she was quickly deciding that her new nest was pretty awesome.

Gajeel and Natsu were great brothers, even if they bickered a lot, and Lucy and Levy made really nice queens despite not being dragons.

Best of all, there was none of the glares and hatred she'd experienced away from Grandina. It felt really good to be accepted.

"What did you find there?" Lucy asked with a smile as she came up to join them. Their job was to help deal with any magic that the Nirvits might've left, but that was slow going so they had plenty of time to relax or help out in other ways.

"I think it's a pot!" Wendy exclaimed, eagerly showing the blond who was becoming a kind of sister what she'd found.

"Oh, that's a nice one too!" Lucy grinned and crouched down to study it closely, "Looks like the Nirvits had a thing for dragons too." She pointed to where a dragon had been carved into the side, and frowned a little as she remembered the way Wendy, Natsu, and Gajeel had been treated by their own kind. It still bothered her.

"You know, it still really bothers me the way I've heard they treated you, Natsu, and Gajeel." She sighed and shook her head, "The dragons I mean. It's just not right. And I think if it were me I'd want to get back at them a little."

"How would you do that?" Wendy asked curiously, fascinated by the idea of someone not an adopted human dragon being upset about how her nest had treated her.

Lucy's lips twitched upwards, "Well..." She said after a moment, "I think I'd want to stick it to them in every way. Starting with my name." She grinned wickedly, "If they said I was unfit to be a dragon then I'd be something better than a dragon. Like a dragonslayer or something. And if they didn't want me in their nest I'd just go out and build the biggest, strongest, nest of other dragonslayers there was."

"Dragonslayers huh?" Gajeel stepped in behind Lucy, his lips. His eyes sharpened on her, dark humor coloring his voice. He dropped a hand onto her head, "That would a pretty ballsy name Blondie."

"So what?" Lucy huffed and whipped around to give Gajeel a glare, swatting at his hands, "It's common sense, if you want to stand out with a name on your own, you have to make it impressive!"

Natsu had keeled over laughing at the first, proud, declaration from Lucy, but stopped at her reasoning. A name that was bigger and badder than the others. A way to form a nest and hide what they were without having humans wary over dragons walking among them.

Dragonslayers.

Natsu gave her a crooked grin and he pulled the pot from Wendy's hands, spinning it recklessly on his finger. He caught it between his two palms, ignoring Levy's frantic cries for him to be careful!

"What d'you think Wendy?" He asked her. "You wanna change our name? Become dragonslayers and do our own thing?"

She looked a little unsure. They were dragons after all, but making a new nest and having a fresh start - a name like that was a good way to start it off.

"Dragonslayers!" She repeated excitedly, a fresh wave of hope rushing over her.

Natsu couldn't help but smile at her as he stood up, stomping a foot down on an old rock with paintings on it. He ignored the way his heel was tracking mud on it along with Levy's mournful wails.

"Alright!" He punched the air, securing a light hand on his stomach where his special exceed egg was residing, "Dragonslayers is what we'll call ourselves then!"

Wendy let out a happy little roar of excitement at that while Gajeel chuckled darkly, but the broadening grin on his face said he liked the name as well. He certainly wouldn't mind slaying a few dragons. Starting with that bitch Mother Glare.

He kept that to himself though while Lucy laughed at his nestmate's antics.

"I'm glad I could help!" She exclaimed even as she stood up and tugged Natsu off of the rock he was standing on before Levy tried to shoot lightning or something at him.

"Levy's going to fry you or something if you keep mucking up the site," She scolded, but couldn't entirely hide her amusement at how all three had adopted her idea so easily. At least Natsu wasn't being a brat about it and let her drag him off. This time.

"Yeah, yeah." Natsu huffed, but it was all for show. The more he chewed on it the more he liked the idea of being a dragonslayer. It was like biting into an unexpectedly tasty fire.

And the more he liked it the happier he got. Lucy really was pretty smart when she wanted to be.

He glanced at the other two, a warm feeling curling in his chest. Being a nest meant he had to share. At least with those two. Wendy more than likely didn't have a hoard comparable of size to his own, or even a hoard at all, but Gajeel would come close.

Still, Natsu found he didn't mind the thought so much anymore. Perhaps it was because he accepted them as his nest, or because of something else.

He didn't know, but he also didn't care. There was a part of himself that felt at peace for the first time in ages. Despite what lore said, dragons weren't meant to be solitary creatures. They needed a family.

And as frightening as the thought of him making a new nest was, courage steeled itself in his veins. He could try it again.

Just one more time he would do this. Dragonslayers, all of them pushed from their mother nest to make a new one of their own.

A soft voice murmured in the back of his head. It was filled with doubt and uncertainty, but Natsu smothered that evil little whisper.

He relaxed a little and dropped down to the ground while Levy poked around the ruins with the care of an archaeologist.

His hands found the egg he was caring full, thinking it wouldn't be long before it hatched. The warm, blue thing was smooth in his hands, almost fragile. Natsu grinned widely at the sight of it, far more interested in that then whatever Levy was doing.

"We're making good timing dragonslayers!" Her voice carried over, laughing on the wind, "But we're still going to be here for another day to finish translating the ruins on the south wall."

"Oh that's a bummer," Lucy sighed and came up behind Natsu, dropping her hands on his shoulders when she knelt behind him.

He felt a warm shiver run along his spine and curl in his stomach, making him feel content.

Natsu held obediently still as Lucy began to rifle through their bag, no doubt taking stock of their supplies. She let out a frustrated sigh, her fingers moving up on the straps around his arms to try and tug the pack off.

He bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from smirking at how she was struggling to try and pull it from his back, "Natsu you pig! You burned through all of our supplies!"

Making a big show of yawning, he shrugged lazily, "Big deal!" He grinned at her, "We can always just get more. Or Gajeel and I can find something fuzzy to eat."

Lucy and Levy looked positively horrified at the thought.

"Gihi!" Gajeel cackled, "Wouldn't be a problem!" He smirked wickedly at Levy, "All kinda good huntin' in this area."

"Not happening!" Levy huffed back, looking a little green, "You and I are going to head back to the village and pick up some more! The archaeologists don't have the means to cope with dragon appetites as well as paying us!"

"Ain't that more an argument _for_ huntin'?"

"No it's not! I doubt the archaeologists want to see animal carcasses around their site!"

"The old farts ain't even here right now anyway!"

The old men had been required to head to a conference or something about their discoveries, and so weren't around to even need supplies.

They would've retreated to the village with the other diggers helping out except this section of wall had been magically encrypted. Or something. Gajeel was a little vague on how exactly word magic worked.

Regardless, Levy was needed to deal with it as part of her job. So they couldn't leave just yet.

At least it was the last bit before the season was over.

"Exactly!" Levy agreed and tugged on Gajeel, "That means they can afford to feed us right now! So come on! We'll take Wendy with us and get her a few things too!"

Gajeel grunted, muttering something under his breath over having to do all the work while Natsu got to sit around and play mother hen, but stomped off after Levy.

Wendy trailed after the older dragon, her arms still filled with her kitten.

Snorting at Gajeel having to go grocery shopping, Natsu stretched out and twisted his head towards Lucy, "You gotta admit, it would be easier if we could just go out and hun-"

"I'm not watching you slaughter Bambi's mother to satisfy your enormous appetite," Lucy replied haughtily, sticking her nose up in the air.

This earned her a deeply confused look from Natsu, who didn't understand the odd reference. And having no frame of reference, he shrugged.

"Who's Bambi?" He asked.

"A deer."

"And I killed a deer's mother?"

"Yes."

Natsu looked even more confused over this, "Well ya. I've done in tons of deers, probably a lot of them were does too! What's it matter?"

"It's the principle of the thing," Lucy argued

"What principle!" Natsu exploded hotly, "Food is food, and deers don't even come around this area you weirdo!"

"So now I'm weird?" She shot back at Natsu, who growled and hugged his egg closer to his chest.

"Yes" He huffed at her, edging closer to her for each word he spoke.

"You're making a big deal out of a deer!" Natsu grumbled at her, "Can't get much weirder than that."

"It's a figure of speech!" Lucy protested, pushing in closer to him, "I just don't want to see you kill something!"'

Natsu blinked at that, not actually having the words to dispute her words. He stared, his eyes locking onto hers, mouth parted and breathing slowing.

What an odd saying. And an even stranger way of getting her point across. Something in his gut twisted at the way she spoke about him. It made him feel a little warm and confused as he stared at her large, brown eyes.

Lucy's own breath hitched as she suddenly realized just how close she and Natsu had gotten while they were arguing. Not that they hadn't been close before, or even closer than this, but something about right this moment had her breath catching as something hot and eager knotted in her gut.

She stared up at him, not sure what to say as their pointless argument petered away into silence. They were just...there. She could feel his chest brushing against hers and hot tingles shivered pleasantly over her from the contact. It was electrifying, and suddenly she was acutely aware of everything about him. The way he smelled of fire and smoke. The way his warm breath felt against her. Even the way his eyes were darkening with confusion and something that had her wanting to melt against him.

He licked his lips, perhaps unconsciously, and her eyes automatically dropped to them. She'd never considered them before, but now she was seized by the sudden, wild, desire to press her lips against them and find out if they were as soft as they looked.

She tore her eyes away to look back into his and felt her breath catch again as something seemed to shift between them. There was a dark intensity and hunger in his eyes. She'd seen looks like that before, but never had it ignited a fire within her like she felt now.

It was wild and intoxicating and he seemed to feel it too as suddenly they were pressed together fully, though she wasn't sure who had moved to make that happen. She raised her hands and curled them gently around his shoulders.

She wanted this. Wanted to make her desire reality. How long had she wanted this? She didn't know, but Natsu offered no resistance as they leaned in, seemingly eager to meet her halfway.

It was clear Natsu wasn't thinking much about the why. But he was edging close enough for Lucy to almost feel him. Was he really going to-...?

His eyes snapped to the right at the last second, his body tense and focused. Suddenly he was no longer looking at Lucy with a darkening intensity, but somewhere in the distance.

Before she could open her mouth to question him, Natsu's arms locked around her and he was jumping backwards, the ground erupting in soft sand.

The sound was faint at first, so quiet it almost went unnoticed. But the scent was enough to tear Natsu's eyes upward and away from Lucy. Arms locking around her and moving on instinct alone, he was able to escape that first attack.

Cursing himself for taking so long to notice it, he skidded back and nearly tripped over the same rock he had been dancing over earlier. His egg was still tucked protectively by his side as he stumbled over the ruins. Lucy was locked against his other arm, a real, guttural growl erupting from somewhere low in his chest.

He didn't know how he missed the approach, of not one, or two, but three strangers, but they had clearly moved with such a subtle step it was easy to overlook them.

Especially when he had been in the most intense staring contest of his life. His heart raced in his ears, blood thumping with confusion.

What was that?

He didn't know.

Instead he directed his attention to what he could understand. And that was the three new interlopers.

Just three, but Natsu could feel an incredible amount of magical power emanating from them. A sort of pressure that left him growling. If he had the ability to transform, it would have been enough for him to shift and give all three of them a hard swing with his tail.

But as that wasn't an option, he slowly released his arm from Lucy.

They had some dangerous company.

* * *

 **Mslead here! I had Kytrin answer the questions in her very precise, practical way in the hopes of dispelling any further confusion. You can see her A/N up at the top! Please read it! Alright guys, short chapter, but we have fun on the way!**

SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! - **Raiza-chan - KaUiA (** Oh I am so glad you enjoyed the last chapter! Lucy was born in our world, nothing too out of the ordinary there with Layla or anything! Sorry, cool theory though! You'll have to wait for your answers!) - **silver light of dawn (** Dragon family structure is pretty fun to think about. I love Paternal!Natsu) - **OgaHilda** \- (You are surprisingly not the only person to call Natsu pregnant!) - **Talesoftwofairies - MoOnyMoon** (Nah the exceeds won't be able to change shape in this fic. And yes, this story will have lemons. Act 3) - **bluebirdeyes (** me too buddy, me too) - **guest account (** thanks a bunch! We had fun making it) - **sagittarii (** Natsu's scarf is a fun mood ring) - **Guest (** Oh I would agree. We read through the fic, but since there are two of us writing sometimes the perspective gets blurry.) - **Become's one with the story - Angela-the-neko - Animallover (** Natsu is definitely aware of Lucy. He has been for a whiiiiile. It's going to be a fun ride for the next couple of chapters, that's for sure. ) - **.3 (** Sorry you're confused, hopefully Kytrin was able to answer your questions up at the top!) - **KittyCrow12 (** Oh yeah, we had to lay the groundwork for them to appear!) - **Snavej (** *holds you tightly* do not cry! It is a happy day!) - **Pixelbow (** SEE KYTRIN? PEOPLE THINK I'M HILARIOUS! I'm glad you like their little family) - **Guest (** omg yeah. Wendy makes her grand appearence! It's a fun day that's for sure. And Happy Halloween to you too!) - **CrimsonLightKey (** Natsu SHOULD be arrested for it. I agree. And the whip seems like it was everyone's favorite. I hope you had a safe Halloween too!) - **CharonLumia - Chouxes** (YES THAT IS ONE POSSIBILITY) - **YuyuiHime - sarara1.8 (** GOOD. Don't think I forgot about you) **kirby42280 - Saracasim - Cora-DragonSoul (** Thank you! Oh I'm sorry you thought it was awkward. Wendy has always been a little hard for me to write) **panicatthediscofreek7 (ROGER THAT!) - Guest** (Oh never apologize for pointing something out! We addressed it at the top of the chapter!) - **Wonderwomanbatmanfan (** Hahaha we almost got ya!) - **Skylovesdragons - Intangibly Yours - Sara lovelymusic (You can count on that!) - Trollala.X (** OH ATTRACTION EVVVVERYWHEREEEE. Natsu has always been soft. He's just a ball of goo and fluff. You're right on though, this story is a lot about Natsu's growth ) - **FairyDemonDust - Musicality (** Oh Kytrin and I talked about it a lot. In fact Snogfairy helped me bounce ideas off too! So you should thank her too!) - **HammyJessa - Etrinity (** I'm glad SOMEONe loves my humor. Fufufu.) - **Dark-Angel-of-Wicked-Chaos17 - Guest - fanficlove2014 (** I see you ensnared another into this fic. Good job. You have earned your stay! Natsu's brain can't quite catch up to the rest of him!) - **animequeen100 (** I'm glad you like it! Happy will make his appearence soon! Hahahaha don't worry. Patience. Paaaatience.) - **Aurora (** The gates are Lucy's primary attacks in this fic, however she will definitely get her chance to shine soon.) - **SakuraPetal91 - Dragodden (** ohohooho, wasn't it? Yeah I kind of find it interesting too!) - **wishyouweremedontya (** Yes, a dragon exceed for all! We've answered that question a couple of times already, but Kytrin answered it for you up above!) - **ThatOneExoticPotato (** OH! CRAP. I was supposed to update that on Halloween. SHSHFHAHEWOAAA! I'm glad you liked it!) - **rrrrRANDOMmm - Fireshifter (** absolutely! I hope this was fast enough for you!) - **Little Red (** HAHAHA. Maaaaybe.) - **Twishadowhunter** (Ohhh, you'll find out ;) patiennnnce.) - **the-clumsy-one (** OH YEAh. They can definitely see it for themselves now.) - **thewritersheart (** Everyone is SUPER PUMPED about Happy's Egg. I'm so glad everyone loves this little exceed so much~) - **chelsannful - Amelia Loves Anime** (Oh, maybeeee. The state of his scarf is in constant flux) - **wonderlust714 (** omg. NO DON't BINGE READ. This is a marathon not a sprint!) - **Seriphia** (Wendy is a healer, which is appropriate in forming the nest. Yes. Thank you. For the... ah, licks. Kytrin and I shall treasure them always. And yes. We totally know fanfiction2014!) - **Avengerika** (Oh no! I hope you're okay now! I hope this brought you a little bit of cathartic enjoyment! Feel better!)

 _ **SINCE WE GOT OVER 50 REVIEWS AGAIN, HERE IS A SNEAK PEAK TO THE NEXT CHAPTER AS A SPECIAL THANK YOU!**_

 _ **-::-**_

 _Lucy caught sight of him as they ran for one another, Natsu reaching a hand out for her, relief tearing through him at the sight that she was still okay. She was fine. Leo was wrong-_

 _But her face went pale and the sun suddenly went dark as something large and towering rose up behind him._

 _"Natsu watch out!" Lucy screamed, and he turned, lifting his arms just in time for a massive purple claw to bare down on him, slamming Natsu into the ground._


	28. The Deathly Hallows

**_Act 2_**

* * *

 ** _28_**

 ** _The Deathly Hallows_**

 _'Perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it.'_  
— J.K Rowling, **_Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_**

* * *

"Hey! Who invited you losers?" Natsu shouted out.

"Why...she did." The center newcomer purred, a knowing and cruel smirk curling her lips, "So sorry to have interrupted, but we really mustn't keep the master waiting."

"The master?" Lucy asked before she could stop herself, torn between nerves about these new people, and angry. Angry over them showing up when they did and over what they'd interrupted.

Now that she was thinking properly there was little doubt in her mind what would've happened had things between her and the dragon not been interrupted. And to her surprise she really wanted it to happen.

Natsu could still drive her up the wall, but he was no longer the jerk she'd known when they met. She actually liked this version. Quite a bit.

But these guys had to go and spoil it.

The one on the far right with the pointed ears and the bright red hair, grinned broadly and wickedly, "I think blondie's mad at you Hoteye." He chuckled darkly and cocked his head at her lazily.

"I'm Cobra. This is Angel and that's Hoteye." He smirked, "We're members of the Oracion Seis."

He said that the same way Natsu had when he'd told her his name. As if it was supposed to mean something important and scare her.

Just like then, Lucy blinked at him blankly, "Uh, okay? I assume that's a magic guild?"

The looks of complete shock on their faces had Natsu roaring with laughter beside her, "What?" She demanded in confusion.

"Oh man!" Natsu chortled despite the seriousness of the situation, "Your faces! Unbelievable! I had the exact same reaction!"

"What the hell?" The one called Cobra shot back at Natsu, "Why don't you stuff it you burned out firecracker!"

"What did you say to me?" Natsu growled, rising immediately to the other's growls. Lucy took a gentle hold of Natsu's arm to prevent him from flinging himself at Cobra. Angel just laughed and turned towards her companions.

"Hoteye, go intercept the other two. We don't want them interfering. Cobra and I should be more than enough to take these two. A half-powered dragon and a barely trained celestial wizard," Her smirk widened.

Almost caressingly, her gaze drifted down to Lucy's waist where her keys jingled on their ring. Greed flashed in the depths of her eyes, a superior smirk curling her lips up into a cruel expression.

Lucy placed a protective hand on her precious keys, a thrill of fear running through her as she watched the woman eye them. She was staring at them as if they were the most coveted treasures in the world. Belatedly Lucy realized, to some people they probably were.

The spirits within were counting on her to protect them, and she twisted her body away to hide them from the woman's gripping sight.

"Natsu, who are they?" Lucy asked. There was nothing in her book about anyone like these people.

He advanced a step forward, having settled the egg protectively behind some rocks and treasure to keep it out of harm's way, "Huh?"

Natsu lifted his fists, fire licking around his knuckles and trailing from his arms. It was a slow, lazy burn, but his eyes were sharp when Cobra matched his step.

Something in the strange man's jacket rippled and shifted, giving way to the diamond head of a large purple snake. It slithered down his body onto the ground, disappearing into the tall grass.

"They're a dark guild, partners with Grimoire Heart," Natsu growled, "They're the ones who tried to take you the day we met. They're both total Zeref fanatics."

Lucy started at that, her eyes flashing towards the pink haired man beside her. Zeref? Wasn't he-...

"Cobra is a dragon that runs around in the underworld, uncaring of territories," Natsu warned her with a flash of his eyes, "If you see him shifting, you need to get out of the way."

Lucy paled and nodded, not in the least interested in getting squashed by a dragon. Especially not one that was buddies with that creep Hades from Grimoire Heart.

"Right." She replied edging away slightly, figuring that if this was going to get rough then she needed to give Natsu a little more room to work with. Unfortunately, that also meant she was further away from his protection, but there was no getting around that. She eyed the two Oracion Seis members warily, not at all certain what the girl in white feathers would do while the two dragons growled at each other.

Her contemplation was taken out of her hands, however, when she was abruptly staring at a copy of herself.

"What?!" She exclaimed in shocked confusion.

"Lucy Heartfilia." Her doppelganger said in an analytical tone, "Twenty-three years old. Originally from the world Earth where she had no family or friends. Passed through the gates unexpectedly a few months ago and joined Fairy Tail. Has since been learning celestial magic from Leo and Jellal Fernandez."

Lucy gaped as her copy smirked, "Has collected several zodiac keys, and possesses great magical potential, but still qualifies as barely trained."

"Oh well done Gemini!" Angel cooed approvingly, "Thank you!" She smirked cruelly at Lucy, "Crushing you should be fun. Jellal isn't known to train _total_ losers!"

Lucy felt a chill go down her spine. She was in deep trouble.

The sensation of cold was felt by Natsu as well as his attention was drawn away from Cobra for a few seconds. His eyes were wide, his throat tight.

A celestial wizard?

Sure, there were others that existed, it was true. But one with a connection to summon the celestial spirits? And one like Gemini?

He didn't think that was even possible. The woman was dangerous and powerful. Which meant Lucy was in more danger than he first realized, "But how-"

A blow exploded under his chin, Cobra striking with deadly precision.

"I think you got other things to be paying attention to than what your little friend is doing!" Cobra jeered, sending Natsu hurtling into the ruins.

He growled as he climbed back to his feet, feeling a lead weight in his stomach as Lucy summoned Taurus to her side. Only to have the pervy bull completely distracted by Gemini's body double.

He couldn't concentrate on this now. Defeating Cobra was the priority, then he could help Lucy out. Combat against a powerful wizard like her - it was Lucy's first serious battle.

He just hoped Lucy could hang on until he was done.

The golden key he carried in his scarf warmed against his skin. It seemed Natsu wasn't the only one who wanted to fight.

Lucy hardly noticed as the two dragons began hurtling attacks and insults at each other with abandon. It was like a human sized version of the fight Gajeel and Mother Glare had gotten into, and just like that fight they quickly took it out of the immediate area so they could go to town.

In some ways that was a relief as it meant she wouldn't be collateral damage. In others it was a problem as it left her relatively alone with Angel. And it was becoming rapidly obvious that Angel was not only capable of summoning her spirits, she knew how to use them to their best advantage.

Something she was still learning how to do.

"Okay...Taurus didn't work." She muttered to herself as she pulled out another key, "Let's try Virgo. Open! Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

"Impressive!" Angel purred, "You're able to summon more than one Zodiac in a row. It's just too bad it you can't summon multiple at a time. Not that it would do you any good anyway. Gemini!"

"I don't think Gemini will be able to stop Virgo as easily!" Lucy grinned, "Virgo! Punishment time!"

"Yes princess!" Virgo replied and began to move forward only to stop as Gemini held up a very familiar looking gold key, "Not going to happen this time."

Lucy's eyes widened as Virgo began visibly fighting the control that was re-directing her attack, "Princess! Look out!" She exclaimed, "I can't control it!"

"What?" Lucy yelped, and hastily slashed her key through the air, "Close! Gate of the Maiden!"

"You shouldn't have done that!" Gemini taunted as Virgo disappeared, and they slashed their copy of the key through the air, "Open! Gate of the Maiden!"

A hundred yards away, where Natsu and Cobra were still fighting as well, Natsu's key burned hotly. Lucy was in serious trouble and Leo was desperate to get into the fight. Lucy was a fabulous student, but she wasn't up to the level of the likes of Angel yet. It would take a miracle for her to get out of this alive, and he badly wanted to help make that miracle happen.

Cobra was a slippery bastard though, evading Natsu's attacks as swiftly as he dealt them out. Pointy eared little shit that he was, he taunted Natsu at every opportunity he had.

But Natsu, in his typical blind rage, had managed to slam a few hits on the dragon

Still, Natsu had to admit he was getting tired, and the poison from his attacks were starting to wear down on him. To a demon, it gave him resistance to it, but Natsu hardly was tapping into those powers. They were out of his reach just as much as his dragon ones were.

"Is that the best the great END can do?" Cobra jeered as Natsu went crashing into the ground. Rage pulsed through the fire dragon and he climbed back to his feet, panting out heavily through his mouth.

He snuck a glance over at Lucy, fighting for her life a distance away.

"Distracted by your girlfriend in the middle of a fight?" Cobra laughed, lunging at Natsu again. He managed to instinctively twist to evade the claw sailing an inch from his face.

An opening.

"Fire dragon roar!" Natsu bellowed, a gust of flame erupting from him and landing squarely on the other dragon. Cobra took the blast right to the face and he went reeling away with a shout of pain.

Natsu climbed up to his feet as he watched Cobra go down, trying to put himself out. He could wait.

"Lucy-" Natsu gasped and sprinted towards her, seeing Angel laughing as Lucy tried to reason with her spirit, "Lucy!"

He didn't notice as Cobra's shouts of pain fell silent and a low growling took its place. Natsu's attention was only on Lucy and getting to her.

Lucy caught sight of him as she turned towards him, Natsu reaching a hand out for her, relief tearing through him at the sight that she was still okay. She was fine. Leo was wrong-

But her face went pale and the sun suddenly went dark as something large and towering rose up behind him.

"Natsu watch out!" Lucy screamed, and he turned, lifting his arms just in time for a massive purple claw to bare down on him, slamming Natsu into the ground.

The dragon pushed out all the air from Natsu's lungs, not giving him enough time to even cry out as the claws flexed around his body and jerked him to the left with enough force to make the bones in his neck groan in protest.

Had he been a normal human, he was sure to have lost his head. It was also a miracle that the poison dragon was a smaller kind. They tended to run that way, with their brightly colored scales to match their venomous nature. Small and quick. Those were traits unique to their brand of dragon unlike Gajeel's bulkier form.

Natsu groaned as Cobra's claw flexed around his ribs, bruising and digging into his flesh. Natsu's hands clutched at the scales, fingers digging into Cobra to try and drag him off.

"Still thinking about 'Lucy' are you?" Cobra hissed furiously, his towering form heavy and intimidating, "Don't worry, we won't kill the girl. She's important to our plans. We'll just take her, and make her a willing pawn."

His snout lowered to Natsu, a dangerous smirk stretching across his muzzle, "Won't that be perfect for you? Having Lucy so devoted to Zeref? After all he's your br-"

Natsu cut him off with a strong right hook to Cobra's face, the dragon's head snapping back, "Shaddup!"

As the dragon roared in petulant fury, Natsu dug the key out from his scarf. Panic was roaring to life through him. Trapped as Natsu was, he couldn't do anything to help Lucy. That just left-...

It wasn't really an option now, was it? Sagittarius or not, Natsu wasn't left with a choice.

He couldn't let those people get their hands on Lucy. Natsu wouldn't let them sully her.

"Lucy!" He roared to her, catching sight of how she was sprinting towards him and the venom spewing dragon. Did she really plan on trying to rescue him?

Impossible.

"Lucy stop!" He shouted and flung the treasure he carried with him down at her feet, "You gotta finish things with Angel! This key is strong enough to defeat Gemini and Virgo!"

Lucy didn't even hesitate as she dove for the gold key and snatched it up, "Thanks!" She cried as she dodged a blast from Angel's weird mechanical spirit and took off running.

She glanced down at the key, wondering what spirit would be that strong, and felt her jaw drop at the sight of Leo's symbol on it. _Natsu_ had possessed Leo's key all this time?

That...certainly explained a lot.

But now was not the time to be dwelling on it.

"Open! Gate of the Lion!" She called, frantically slashing the key through the air, "Leo!"

They didn't have an official contract or anything, obviously, but from the way Leo popped out immediately, looking like he wanted to tear something apart, she guessed her teacher wasn't in the mood to quibble over details like that.

"It's alright Lucy." Leo growled, "I'll protect you."

"Not against three you can't!" Lucy protested and pulled out her whip. It wouldn't have done her any good before now, but now that the odds were evened up some she could use it.

Though she felt bad that she would be using it against Virgo as the spirit had been the one to teach her how to use the weapon in the first place with Natsu. She glanced at the pink haired spirit. Then again, maybe she wouldn't. Knowing Virgo she'd be thrilled at the 'punishment'.

Regardless she stepped up to Leo's side, "I told you before. I fight _with_ my spirits. I don't hide behind them." She flashed the lion a fierce grin, and felt a flush of pride when he returned it with a nod.

"I'll deal with Virgo." He growled, "You take care of that trigger happy blaster over there."

"Right." Lucy agreed as Gemini and Angel both stared at them in mingled horror and shock.

"He _gave_ you Leo's key?!" Angel shouted in outrage, "How can he just give you a key like that?! They're priceless! Gemini do something!"

"But if we try to stop Leo we'll lose Virgo!" Gemini protested to Angel, "Lucy can't sustain two spirits at once, so we can't take control of him and have her here!"

Angel gave out an angry snarl as she raised her machine spirit, Chisel into the air, "I don't care! Leo is the real threat here! Get rid of that useless maid and take him out!"

Uncertainty flashed over Gemini's face, their dark eyes moving from where Natsu was currently being rag-doll shaken by Cobra, to where Lucy had her whip out and was avoiding Angel's blasts.

Leo's key and the Leader of the Zodiac, held by the dragon End. It was hard to believe he would let it go. Gemini could feel the confusion in Lucy's thoughts. The way his blind trust in her was infusing her with enough confidence and love for her spirits to give Lucy the courage to fight back.

"R-Right," Gemini hesitated, releasing their hold on Virgo and closing the gate. Their hand reached for their Leo key, hesitating for just a moment.

Long enough for a whip to wind its way across their wrists.

"Gotcha!" Lucy shouted with victory, yanking Gemini's hands away from the keys, "You're not getting your paws on Leo!"

Gemini, surprised she had even tried to protect a spirit she wasn't even contracted to, froze on the spot, unable to reach their keys.

"Gemini you useless-!" Angel screamed, but choked off when Leo closed the distance in a flash, taking the distraction for what it was.

There was a flash of light as Leo's strike connected with Angel, a blast of starry magic slamming into her and throwing her back.

Gemini's form wavered, bursting away as Angel's concentration broke and the gate closed. Lucy's whip fell to the ground once it had nothing to hold onto anymore, a sigh of relief rushing through her.

They did it.

"Well well, the girl managed to show some spirit after all," Cobra hissed, giving Natsu a bone crunching squeeze in his claw, "That was entertaining enough, but I think I've had enough fun for now."

Natsu wheezed a little at the tightening grip, but managed a smirk up at Cobra, "Might as well give it up. Lucy didn't lose to your pet celestial wizard, and I ain't losing to you!"

"No?" Cobra smirked down at his trapped prey, "You think so huh?" He leaned down close to Natsu's head, "Somehow I doubt that. For whatever reason you can't even access your inner flames to transform," He purred, and looked to where Cubellios was slithering out of the grass and creeping up on the exhausted blond as she spoke with her new spirit.

Natsu followed his line of sight, ignoring his distracting words and felt his heart stop. The snake! He'd completely forgotten about the snake in all the confusion. It was closing rapidly on an unsuspecting Lucy, and she was too tired to fight it. Leo was already fading back through the gate, just as unaware as Lucy of the danger.

"Lucy!" He cried as loudly as he could, which wasn't nearly loudly enough for his taste with Cobra stepping on him, "Look out!"

That caught the blonde's attention, but it was too late for her to react. Cubellios was nearly within striking range and closing rapidly.

"No!" He wheezed, struggling against the claws holding him down, "No! You can't hurt her!"

"Why not?" Cobra asked lazily, "She beat up Angel. Seems only fair to return the favor."

Natsu stared up at him and his terror suddenly morphed into fury. He grabbed hold of the nearest claw and shoved hard on it, "You. Will. Not. Touch. Her!" He snarled as he pushed, terrified and outraged in equal measure over the thought of the snake poisoning her.

Something within him roared in agreement and a familiar sensation of heat surged through him as red scales began popping out all over his skin.

The transformation Cobra claimed was out of his reach, ripped through him with such speed, the air rushed from Natsu's lungs, replacing oxygen with smoke and fire. His fury made him see red, and he was only distantly aware that his emotions were fueling his change.

His passion made the shift quickly, and if Natsu had the presence of mind to realize how strange that was - he would have remembered dragons never felt so strongly once they changed.

The wings erupted from his back, tail slithering out between Cobra's claws as his body shifted and grew. A deafening roar of challenge bellowed from Natsu as flames poured from him. It was like he was burning his very soul as he broke free from Cobra's surprised grasp.

And he was back, a hulking form, larger than Cobra and quick enough to wrap his jaws around the poison dragon's throat. He took advantage of Cobra's surprise over his transformation and threw him down, his claws sinking down over that strong neck to keep the thrashing dragon's snout and tail away from Lucy.

It was a good thing too, because Cobra released a roar of poisonous gas that caused everything alive near them to wilt and die. But Natsu paid no attention to the poison burning into his scales.

He let loose a narrow jet of flame, straight between Lucy's legs and through her fluttering skirt. The screech she let out was both hilarious and distracting and Natsu almost choked on a laugh that broke through his haze of anger.

It hit the ground directly in front of the snake, a path of fire cutting the snake's approach off from Lucy and giving her enough time to get out of the way.

Cubellios' hissed in protest, reeling back as Cobra watched in panic for his reptilian friend, his tail lifting, sharp and pointed to slash into Natsu's hind. But the fire dragon was past feeling the pain of those strikes. Fiery golden eyes snapped down to Cobra, sharp fangs bared down.

He had him by the neck. If Natsu was so inclined, he could kill him and be done with it.

But at Lucy's desperate look, his rage faded and he roared warningly in Cobra's growling face. He would be lucky this time. As much as Natsu wanted to grind his face into the ground, he had to get Lucy out of there.

Who knew how long it would take Cubellios to find a way around his flames. Or how long his body would stay like this.

He slashed his claws across Cobra's face as he pushed forward to close the distance between himself and his partner. Claws extended, he scooped Lucy gingerly into his arms. Ignoring her surprised shouts, his wings snapped open to catch a hot breeze to lift him into the air, flapping them powerfully.

His tail slithered down, scraping into the ruins, not caring how damaged he made them as he curled it. Inside the dirt he carried, was the small egg he took care to hide earlier.

Natsu didn't plan on sticking around. And he knew Gajeel would have heard his roars. The other member of the Oracian Seis had been there and willing to fight. No doubt Gajeel had his hands full with that member. As annoying as it was to regroup, Natsu knew their best chance of keeping one another safe, especially Lucy, Levy and Wendy, was as a team.

He didn't know what little Wendy could do. But Lucy was out of commission from magical exhaustion, and Levy was tired. On his own, Gajeel shouldn't have a problem facing the weird grid-faced sand guy. But in town it could be tricky.

But who knew if there were any other dark guild members lurking around.

Besides, he had to protect his nest.

Unbidden, Lucy's words crept up to his mind. Words he heard her speak to him several months ago.

' _Even monsters have something, someone, to protect'_

Maybe she was right after all.

* * *

 _ **Hush. We're running out of book titles. XD**_

 _ **Ohohohoho, fun times ahead. That's for sure. Only ONE chapter left in Act 2! This story has also officially been COMPLETELY WRITTEN. It is 65 chapters in total. (Probably, maybe 64). Act 3 is by far my favorite section of the story. We are almost halfway through the story!**_

 _ **This was huuuuuge.**_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! -**_ **ThatBrunnette** (You are very welcome!) - **guest account** (I hope this didn't kill you TOO BAD. Omg, first Wendy and Happy, now Sting and Rogue. YOU GUYS WANT EVERYONE. haha, nah they'll show up in Act 3 at some point.) - **GraceRoyal** (You are actually NOT the first person to ask this, so don't feel like a perv at all. Yeah there will be a Nalu lemon. It'll show up in Act 3) - **Mo0nyMoon** (we live to torment) - **Guest (** We LIVE to torment you guys. I count the day I post. I hope this fight scene satisfied you a bit. We really couldn't spread the focus out in the fight scene because of how fast paced everything went) - **bluebirdeyes** (Oh yeah, we LIVE off the tension. HAHAHA) - **OgaxHilda** (I'm super glad you liked it! Don't worry, be patient my child. Everything you want from this story will soon be upon us!) - **CrimsonLightKey** (SHOOT! Kytrin! They've grown wise to our tricks! Yeah, it was a fun way of introducing them as dragonslayers as a sort of middle finger to elitist dragons.) - **Snavej** (hahaha, the lil' shits of dark guilds. That's who.) **\- wonderlust714 - rrrRANDOMmm - Avengerika** (Well, almost-kisses are all a part of learning to luuuurbe.) - **Haus of Lexy** (OHHHHHH! I think I've read your fic before! That was Kytrin's idea actually, and I remember thinking 'Huh. I've read that in a fic somewhere...' but I couldn't place where. I won't lie, dragon siblings are totes amaze.) - **panicatthediscofreak7 (** NAAAAH, not Cobra. fufufu) - **Angela-the-neko** \- **Skylovesdragons** (I'm glad you liked the sneak peek! I try to throw one in every time you guys blow my mind!) - **Etrinity** (IT'S TOO SOON TO MAKE NATSU AND LUCY HAPPY. THEY MUST SUFFER MORE. You are the second person to suggest the Jiggle Butt Game. Ommmg.) - **fanficlove2014 (** You are very welcome. Yeah it's definitely some fast thinking on Lucy's part naming them dragonslayers. There will be more Nalu moments on the horizon!) - **Sara lovelymusic - shvartzit** (Ooooooh my gooood. I hope you're okay! Your poor lil' EYEBALLS. Well I hope they will be okay, and we will continue to update this fic while you recover.) - **Mooshoon** (we live to terrorize you) - **Animallover** (Lucy is full of interesting ideas! Natsu understands love, but he doesn't quite think he's capable of it. Or at least that's MY opinion. I think Grandina came from the subtitles in the dubbed version...? I thinkkkk? I'd have to ask Kytrin.) - **Dark-Angel-of-Wicked-Chaos17** \- **Crash8573 - FireShifter - Aurora** (I think the point of Lucy's magic getting snuffed out like that was to show the utter strength of one of Zeref's TINY demons. Like that lil' muppet shit managed to wipe Lucy with a single attack. That's not a Raven Tail member, but one of Zeref's pals, so that actually doesn't surprise me one bit. Lucy's character isn't really meant to be the strongest mage. She's meant to be the voice of the audience and give us a role into the story. So I actually think her character has been balanced very well in the story :D ) - **wishyouweremedontya** (Oh reaaaaaaallllly? Pay up, I demand brownies! And what do I get if they don't kiss after the next two chapters? fufufu 8D) - **KittyCrow12** (Maybe he'll join eventually. The twins will make an appearence eventually. somewhere in Act 3) - **sunshine-melodi - kirby42280** (Hahaha, that's a really funny idea) - **Midnight** (Lisanna is alive, she's just a background character though. And Lucy will develop her magic as the story progresses) - **1212tiger1212** (patience! This is a slowish burnnn) - **the-clumsy-one - Wonderwomanbatmanfan - Ahrix -** **Little Red** (uhm. What. Cobra? There's... no cobra here...) **Amelia Loves Anime  
** \- **Mechanical-Rose-Sama** (The kiss will happen. Eventually.) - **Saracasim - ThatOneExoticPotato** (Don't worry, when they finally kiss, it's going to be absolutely breathtaking. HAHAHAHA) - **Princessatj** (...:D *pushes you into the mud* No we don't want you dead. We just want you to be crippled by FEEEEELS) - **Moon Stone Tiger Lily** (*chants* one of us, one of us) - **AwkwayrdFT** (awww! Thank you so much! I'm glad you feel that way!) - **SakuraPetal91 - Chouxes** (omg you REALLY want the lemon, don't you?) - **artistofthemind - Guest** (Welcome to the nest!) - **DIGIKO12** (Ooooh, you poor fool. Catching up with us! Hahaha. We're super glad you liked it!)

* * *

 _Almost 50 reviews again! Here's another sneak peak! You all spoil us so much! :'D_

* * *

 _Checking over her shoulder to ensure Natsu was still busy, Lucy retrieved it from its hiding spot. Hesitant fingers ran over the old leather cover._

 _It was still warm._

 _Once again, the book had updated._

 _Her grip tightened around the spine and she opened the book, looking at all the new pages that had appeared since the last time she had read it. There was so much new material to read._

 _Her heart thumped with sudden nerves and fresh guilt._


	29. The Giving Tree

_**End Act 2**_

* * *

 _ **29**_

 _ **The Giving Tree**_

"Come, Boy, sit down. Sit down and rest."  
And the boy did.  
And the tree was happy."  
― Shel Silverstein **, _The Giving Tree_**

* * *

It turned out Natsu's assumption about Gajeel was mostly right. Unfortunately, while the metal dragonslayer was able to transform at will and stomp his opponent he was hindered by Levy and Wendy being unable to do the same.

"Levy!" Lucy called in alarm as Natsu flew close. It was a mercy they hadn't gotten far since they didn't know how long his transformation would last. If they were lucky it would hold out long enough to get them out of the middle of that so Gajeel could get himself out without worrying about it.

"Natsu! Hold out your arm!" She called, and Natsu immediately complied, understanding at once what she wanted.

"Grab hold!" He growled to them both as he dove low enough for them to grab his claws as he passed overhead. And it was a good thing he did as Hoteye immediately turned the area into some kind of mud quicksand. Though he wasn't fast enough to prevent their escape.

"Gihi! Tough luck for you." He growled and unleashed a dragon's roar as he also took to the air. He didn't know how Natsu had transformed, but kept his questions to himself. Escape was more important.

Hoteye had done a lot of talking during their fight, and while that was informative he wasn't about to stick around and risk Lucy getting kidnapped by one of his guildmates.

Natsu's wings flattened themselves down as he saw Gajeel streaking under him, the girls and exceeds in his arm. He had slunk his tail up to let Wendy catch the egg he was carrying since she was the most balance in a dragon's hold.

Which turned out to be a good thing.

They flew without stop, but the poison from Cobra's attacks were burning into Natsu's hind. His flank bled sluggishly, and now that Lucy was safe, as well as everyone else, Natsu suddenly felt exhausted.

His gasped, his wings catching in mid-flap as suddenly he felt him lose hold of his transformation. Red scales flaked off, Natsu's fangs gritting as he fought to keep himself level.

"Gajeel!" Natsu swore warningly as abruptly he lost control of his magic. The transformation faded away and he was dropping through the air with Wendy, Lucy, and Levy in his arms.

He let out a hoarse shout of surprise, and Gajeel swung his metal head around in shock, knowing if they went splat on his iron scales, they were bound to suffer more than a few bumps and bruises.

Natsu twisted around, curling the screaming girls to his chest, grateful Gajeel was at least flying straight and level under him. He cringed, bracing himself for impact and to take the brunt of the fall.

One which never came.

Pantherlily flung his arms around their bodies, transforming into his large, hulking shape at the very last second. On his back he had two large wings, flapping through the air. It was the first time Natsu saw an Exceed in action, so he was absolutely stunned to realize they would not be dying today.

"Way to go Lily!" Natsu shouted in relief as the big cat lowered them safely down onto Gajeel's back. There was a small pop, a puff of smoke, and once it cleared Lily was back to normal in his tiny shape.

"What a relief," Lucy sighed, holding Wendy and Levy to her tightly.

Her friend straightened up and looked at Natsu, reaching over to poke at his cheeks.

"What's the matter? Why did you suddenly lose it like that?" Levy asked the fire dragon, who was still sprawled on his back, looking relieved to be on something very solid.

Natsu just shook his head, "I... don't know."

"Hell, I don't even know how I transformed in the first place," He groaned.

Pain lanced up his leg, and Natsu swore violently, his hands clamping down on the ugly wound, bleeding into his pants, "OW! shit!"

He groaned hazily, his eyes growing heavy with what appeared to be illness. Sure enough they were signs of the poison finally working its way through Natsu's body.

"Oh no!" Wendy exclaimed in alarm as she suddenly realized just how badly Natsu was hurt, "Natsu!" She nudged Lucy over a little and knelt beside him, "It'll be alright Natsu." She smiled at him and pressed her hands over his wound, heedless of the blood oozing out.

Lucy watched in awe as the little dragoness' hands glowed like Chelia's had and she began to heal him.

"Wow... I thought Chelia was the only one who could do that?" She breathed, and Levy shook her head, "It must be a sky related skill." She replied, earning a confused look from Wendy.

"Chelia?" She asked curiously as her magic worked, and Levy smiled, "She's a sky godslayer." She explained, "She's from the guild Lamia Scale, and has healing magic a lot like yours."

Wendy's eyes went wide, "Really?!" She exclaimed, "Wow! I'd like to meet her sometime!"

Natsu groaning a little pulled her attention back to the task at hand and she focused her attention again as she worked to purify the toxins coursing through him. Once she was done there was little more than a raw looking pink spot where the wound had been.

"There." She sighed happily, exhausted but pleased, "It might be stiff and sore for a day or two, but it'll be fine. You just need a light bandage over it while it finishes healing."

Natsu stared at his new little sister in awe, and suddenly treated her to a dazzling bright smile, "You're awesome Wendy!" He exclaimed while Lucy rummaged around for the prescribed bandage, "Thanks!"

Wendy blushed at the praise, pleased she'd made him happy, "I'm glad I could help." She murmured only to sway a little as her own exhaustion hit her.

Natsu hastily wrapped his arms around her so she didn't fall, "You get some rest Wendy." He rumbled softly, "You've earned it."

"Thanks," Wendy sagged, even as Carla huffed at her for taxing herself.

"Poor child," Carla murmured and turned on Natsu, "Now don't go expecting Wendy to heal you of all your bumps and bruises every time you decide to get into a fight ruffian! She is still just a little girl!"

"Yeah, yeah," Natsu positioned Wendy around one of Gajeel's spines, watching as Levy used each one as a handhold to edge her way up onto his head to let him know what was going on.

It was a good idea, since Gajeel didn't really know what was going on back where they stood. For all he knew, Natsu could have bled out all over his scales.

Natsu looked over Wendy as the sky dragon curled up, the wind not bothering her so high up in the air. Not that he expected it would.

Carla was being tucked into her arm with the egg, and Natsu carefully withdrew it to nestle back into his shirt so he could keep it warm.

He swallowed and turned his attention back to Lucy, realizing they were by themselves again.

"Are you okay? You got pretty banged up there," He reached out to tug lightly on her ponytail. Natsu's eyes flashed to her shoulder, afraid she might have exacerbated her pre existing injury.

Lucy smiled a little tiredly at him, "I'll be fine." She replied reassuringly, "I might have some colorful bruises and scrapes for a few days, but none of it was really serious."

Though she might see if Wendy could give her a checkup once she recovered. Just in case.

She leaned a little against him, smiling happily when he curled his arm around her waist. He couldn't pull her into his lap, but she liked how he was trying to keep her warm anyway.

Which... reminded her.

She pulled out Leo's key and held it out to him, smiling at how it had cooled down from before, but was still warm to the touch, "Here." She grinned, "Thanks for letting me borrow the key to summon Leo. You were right. He made a serious difference."

Natsu stared at the key in shock, hardly able to believe his eyes. She was giving it back to him? A priceless treasure he knew she wanted to have, and she was giving it back?

He took it from her gently, studying it as if he'd never seen it before, "You're giving it back?" He asked, his confusion apparent.

Lucy stared at him in surprise, "Well sure. Why wouldn't I?" She asked in confusion of her own, "You weren't giving it to me permanently were you?"

That made Natsu pause in consideration. Had he been trying to give her Leo's key permanently? He hadn't exactly thought about it at the time, but there had been a part of him that had never expected her to give it back.

And now that she was...there was a part of him that wanted to give the key back to her again. Permanently this time.

Natsu smoothed his thumb over Leo's sign. His eyes were dark with consideration. It almost didn't seem as if the key belonged in his hands anymore.

He swore he wouldn't give the key to Lucy until she obtained Sagittarius, but when their backs were up against the wall, he had freely given it to her.

Leo wanted to be with her.

And furthermore, if they ran into a situation where Natsu alone couldn't protect her, what would he do?

Probably toss the key to her again...

"Nah," He finally decided. Maybe it wasn't worth the effort it would take in the long run.

"Keep it, he's annoying anyway," Natsu mumbled and pressed the glittering token back into her hand. His arm tightened around her to keep her close to him. He tried to tuck his face away so she wouldn't see how red his face became.

She jolted against his chest, and his hopes she wouldn't notice his blushing, died the moment her large eyes met his. Lucy's mouth had dropped open.

"You really mean it?" She asked in quiet awe, "You'd give me this key? Isn't it part of your hoard?"

Natsu met her eyes steadily. His heart was too busy doing an uncomfortable jig somewhere near his spleen for him to use his brain.

Not that he ever made good use of it on a normal day anyway...

He shrugged.

"Yeah, but Leo is a crappy flirt and unreliable, so don't get used to him hanging around once he goes out on a date or something," Natsu grumbled, "Not worth the hassle for me to hold onto anyway."

But he just couldn't stay grumpy at the shining gratitude right before his eyes. Like the dawn chasing away the dark his pout slowly faded and Natsu's face broke out in a wide smile, one that stretched all the way up to his eyes, something that made Lucy's breath catch from the genuine happiness behind it. No matter how many times she saw it, every time it rose, Lucy felt that familiar hitch to the back of her throat.

It was something handsome and warm.

"Besides, you're getting a lot better at summoning spirits!" Natsu exclaimed, "So consider it a gift I guess."

Lucy felt her heart skip a beat at his praise and she smiled widely as she wrapped her arms around him in a genuinely happy hug, "Thank you Natsu!"

She kissed his cheek as she pulled back, a little blush dusting her cheeks matching the one on his, and curled her hand around the precious key, "I promise I'll take good care of this."

She smiled at the key itself, aware now that Leo could hear her, "And I'll make a contract with you once we land." She promised.

Natsu grinned broadly at her, something in him going all soft and squishy at the sight of her joy, and pulled her into his lap fully this time, "You're gonna get cold." He shrugged by way of explanation when she looked at him, and his heart thumped a little when she just smiled and snuggled up to him.

He tucked her in comfortably and tried not to think about the way his cheek still tingled from the feel of her soft lips pressing against it, or how soft and wonderful she felt in his arms.

Which, of course, meant that was all he could think about.

Lucy was doing weird things to him, there was no question about that, but he found he didn't actually mind that. They were good feelings, and he liked it. He just wished he understood what they were.

Whatever they were, he would figure it out later. For now he had more important things to do.

So their job as a whole ended in failure thanks to Oracian Seis crashing the party and basically ruining the entire dig site. As such, retreat was in order. And while that normally would have displeased Natsu more than anything to even admit such a thing, Lucy had a lot of strange people coming after her.

This couldn't be ignored anymore. In her world, and now in this one. The thought made him uncomfortable, because the idea of someone coming near her filled him with a passionate rage that couldn't be quenched.

Her safety was the highest of priorities.

Which was weird, because when had that changed?

Natsu felt Gajeel's body shift underneath him, his hips riding confidently on the smooth metal scales. He kept Lucy upright as suddenly they shifted laterally, Gajeel's large form turning to head back towards Magnolia.

Lucy didn't scream like she normally would have, seemingly secure in the knowledge Natsu wouldn't let her fall.

It filled him with another odd sense of warmth. One he belatedly realized was trust.

Natsu swallowed thickly, the thought branding itself into his skin wherever Lucy was pressing against him. Did she really trust him...?

He supposed she did...

Because somewhere along the lines, his motivation had slipped from wanting to kill her - to always wondering where she was. To looking for her. To protecting her.

To trusting her.

His fingers pressed into her skin as they swept downward, back into the familiar territory of Magnolia, Gajeel getting them there in record time. Natsu's hands lingered over Lucy, just long enough for his thoughts to run in circles.

Lucy, without him ever realizing it, had become a friend.

More than that, she had become family.

Lucy smiled at him as Gajeel landed and gently untangled herself, but rather than let her scramble down the dragon's side like he usually did, Natsu surprised her by scooping her up in his arms and leaping lightly to the ground.

"Thanks." She murmured, heat rushing to her cheeks again as he gently set her down, and was rewarded with another bright grin. Natsu's hands lingered across her waist, his eyes drawn to her face and a breathless smile curving his lips.

Lucy's fingers grazed his forearms, opening her mouth to ask him if he was really alright when the doors to the guild pushed open.

"Lucy, Natsu, Levy Gajeel, you four are back early." Makarov said as he walked out to greet them with the rest of the guild currently in town, "Has something happened?"

"We were attacked Master." Levy replied as she circled around Gajeel as well and the dragon began transforming down, "By the Oracion Seis."

That news was greeted with a collective gasp and Makarov's expression turned very grave, "I see. Do you know what prompted the attack?"

"They were after me." Lucy admitted her worry slamming into her full force now that the danger was over. She twisted from Natsu's grasp to face the master, "They wanted to force me to join them or something."

She didn't want to pull Fairy Tail into a fight like this, but she wasn't sure how she could prevent it. She didn't want to go any more than she wanted her friends hurt.

She didn't take into account the fact that this was Fairy Tail and these people had become both friends and family. Or that such bonds went both ways.

The reaction to her announcement was met with stunned silence and then fury as each member tried to out shout the others on what they would do if any of those slimy dark guild bastards so much as tried to breathe on her.

The outpouring was unexpected and warmed her heart even as it brought tears to her eyes, "Well... I don't know how well three of them will be fighting." She half laughed and half cried, "Leo helped me beat up Angel and her spirits and Natsu and Gajeel stomped on the other two."

"Then we will bring the entire might of the guild down to crush them," Erza said with a fierce calmness that had Lucy's bottom lip trembling. She set a hand on her shoulder and pressed the other on the crown of Lucy's head, tugging her into a hug.

It would have been a gentle embrace had it not been for her breastplate. However even the slight sting of steel on Lucy's cheek was welcome. She felt warm and happy, the overwhelming sense of belonging washing over her.

"I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me though," Lucy's voice came muffled in Erza's armor.

"C'mon Lucy," Gray's voice came nearby, and she peeked her head up just enough up to look at him. He was staring over at Natsu, but for once didn't seem to have a look of aggression on his face.

"You know better than that, right?" He grinned at her, his expression cool, but firm with belief that what they were doing would be what was good.

"You're part of this crazy guild. Which means no stupid dark guild are going to get their hands on you," He cocked his head towards her partner, "Isn't that right, Natsu?"

Natsu snorted and walked around to look at Lucy, "'Course it is!"

The dragon pushed his face in close to Lucy's flushed cheeks, a smile relaxing his fierce features, "You want to stay here in Fairy Tail, so no one will take you anywhere you don't wanna go. Promise."

Lucy's heart thumped with emotion as she stared back at Natsu. She didn't want any of her friends hurt, they meant so very much to her, but for them to support her so freely like this. Without any hesitation, and with all the confidence in the world that what they decreed would happen... it overwhelmed her.

"Natsu..." She choked and pulled him into a tight hug, her threatening tears finally sliding hotly down her cheeks. No one had ever fought for her like this. No one. Not even her mother had done that. She hadn't needed to, but that little fact didn't make this moment any less poignant.

"Thank you." She muttered into his scarf, trying to convey just how much this meant to her by how tightly she clung to him. She thought maybe that he, of all people, would understand. A thought that was confirmed when he wrapped his own arms around her and gently squeezed back, an entire conversation passing between them with that one motion.

 _'I understand.'_ It whispered.

 _'Thank you.'_ Her gentle nuzzle against his jaw whispered back before she pulled away to give him a bright, if somewhat wet, smile.

Natsu's own grin widened as she wiped her cheeks and bobbed her head determinedly, "Fairy Tail is my home." She told him fiercely, "I'm not leaving it!"

"That's the spirit!" Levy crowed happily, a fierce look that reminded Lucy strongly of Gajeel, on her own face. It was a look she couldn't help laughing at, which seemed to set the rest of the guild off too.

It was in that moment she noticed Wendy and the Exceed hiding shyly behind Gajeel. Or, rather, Wendy and Carla were. Pantherlily had apparently decided that Gajeel's shoulders made a good place to sit.

She headed over to them, drawing everyone's attention to the newcomers and held out her hand to Wendy, "It's alright." She smiled, "We won't let the dark guilds get to you either. Won't you come meet everyone?"

Wendy smiled and hesitantly took Lucy's hand, her eyes flitting around to the rest of the group shyly, "Hello"

Almost at once Wendy was bombarded by the enthusiastic crowd, all of the members who had previously not seen her at first, rushing to greet her now.

"Whoa, and what's your name?" Macao leaned in, grinning at Wendy approvingly, "And how did you get tangled up in all these crazy people?"

"Watch it ya drunk," Gajeel growled at Macao, but a hint of good nature gleamed behind his red eyes, "The girlie here is one of us."

He dropped a heavy, but protective hand on the top of Wendy's head, "She's part of our nest now. Me, her, and Salamander over there are all in one place."

"Huh, how'd you get that to happen?" Gray asked, peering around Gajeel to glance at Natsu's turned back. At some point he had separated from the group after comforting Lucy, but for once it didn't seem to be out of any sort of grumpy behavior.

In fact he didn't even seem to hear Gray's slight. He was too busy staring down.

"Oy, you hear me flame brain?" Gray goaded.

All it earned him was a vague blink and Natsu turning his head towards him curiously.

"Huh, you say something Gray?" He asked. His expression cleared for a second and he smirked at Gray snottily, "It's a dragon thing. You wouldn't get it."

Looking a little dismayed by the lack of rise out of the normally hot-headed dragon, Gray wandered over to look over Natsu's shoulder. Just what was distracting him from Wendy and getting her settled into the guild?

But he stopped as soon as he saw what Natsu had in his hands. A large egg was balanced in his palms, a crack splintering through the shell's membrane.

Natsu's head snapped back towards it in a split second. At the poking and prodding of it, Natsu turned back excitedly towards Wendy, "Look! It's hatching!"

Wendy let out a happy sounding laugh of delight as she realized what was happening, and Natsu found himself being dragged towards the center of the guild. All of the nosy guild members began to press in close to watch the small thing hatch, and Natsu lightly set it on a table to give it room.

"C'mon buddy, you can do it," Natsu breathed to the small creature struggling to find its way into life.

A fissure broke through the side and Natsu's eyes brightened with a childish delight that was shared with Wendy. A tufty tail of blue fur curled out from the egg, before a bright light shone and a loud crack! rang out.

Suddenly the egg was split apart, and something soft and light had landed on the top of Natsu's head.

There, a sleepy blue kitten had made itself a nest, sitting upright enough to cheerfully chirp out a squeaky 'aye!' before settling back down.

Wild cheering broke out through the guild, shaking the ground and lifting the roofs shingles. Natsu looked around in bewilderment and he gathered the small kitten from his head into his arms.

"It's nice here," Wendy whispered next to him, just loud enough to catch his attention, "So happy."

Natsu swallowed, his eyes softening on the girl so close to him. She lifted her small hand up to bury into the fresh, blue fur he held. Natsu could smell the salt of tears in her eyes. Happy ones.

A calming sensation ran through his chest, spreading through his limbs and finally settling in his heart. It was a sense of filling rightness. Of a completion he hadn't known before. And in truth, he was overjoyed she could experience that for herself.

"I guess you picked his name then, huh?" He held the feline up in the air, who waggled its tail and fluttered tiny white wings, "Happy!"

And just like that, Natsu felt as if their family was complete.

-::-

That night found their new family arranging a place for Happy to sleep. The little kitten was tired from all the excitement the guild brought, but he certainly lived up to his namesake.

Lucy laughed as Natsu gathered up every blanket in their apartment to _swaddle_ him like a baby. Of course Happy, even while freshly hatched, was still perfectly capable of sassing Natsu with a charm Lucy would never tire of. Which resulted in the dragon laughing as he carried the blue furball around.

Retreating back to the room for the moment while Natsu went to get something to eat for Happy, a strange pulse of magic came from her nightstand.

She went still, her eyes widening as she realized where the source was coming from.

The book.

Checking over her shoulder to ensure Natsu was still busy, Lucy retrieved it from its hiding spot. Hesitant fingers ran over the old leather cover.

It was still warm.

Once again, the book had updated.

Her grip tightened around the spine and she opened the book, looking at all the new pages that had appeared since the last time she had read it. There was so much new material to read.

Her heart thumped with sudden nerves and fresh guilt.

What would be her excuse this time?

"Hey Lucy!" Natsu's voice laughed from the kitchen, sending a jolt of awareness through her, "C'mon and help me! What do you think baby kittens eat? Milk? Eh - a whole fish will probably be fine."

Blinking at the openness in his voice, Lucy looked at the book, heavy in her hands. And with one shuddering breath, she closed it. Almost at once, Lucy felt better.

She didn't need to sneak a look into Natsu's head. Lucy hadn't needed to for a while. She stowed the book back where she had hidden it in the bottom drawer, her heart fluttering in her chest. She wouldn't look into his head anymore. If there was something bothering him, she would trust him to tell her.

And he wouldn't hurt her. She knew that now.

Maybe sometime soon, when they both were ready, Lucy would pull out the book again. But the next time she did it, it would be to read their story together.

She got up and dusted herself off before rushing to stop Natsu from setting their kitchen on fire.

" _You can't give fish to a kitten!"_

" _Watch me!"_

End Act 2

 **I SEND OUT ALL MY REVIEW RESPONSES EARLIER! SO NOW I'M DOING ANON REVIEWS! I hope this works out better, I didn't want pad the end of the chapter too much! SO HERE ARE GUEST RESPONSES!**

 **Animallover** (Lucy is great at shredding peoples egos. I think she's super skilled at it. I'm glad you picked up on stuff you did!) - **GraceRoyal** (Thanks for the offer but we're not really asking for titles of books right now, I was just joking! Also the books have to be stories with an impact on the literary world (or just me and Kytrin), so we can't use made up titles! Thanks though!) - **Skylovesdragons** (You are welcome! You guys blew my mind again so you get another sneak peek!) - **Etrinity** (ohohoho, yes he was!) - **Aurora** (Oh man, Lucy TOTALLY won against Angel. That was a W. Urano Metria seems to be a popular choice) - **Kotori-sama** (Hahahaaha, man you guys are like YIEEEE DRAGON. And we took it away. Oh don't worry. Just wait, Natsu will repay the favor. 65 chapters is SO not short.) - **ajdrakes** (thanks! We do try really hard!) - **Chipmunk** (THE BOOK IS AWESOME. Also Loke is in his eclipse form before he's contracted.) - **anonymous** (what? Don't cry! Do you want us to STOP updating?) - **Little Red** (be patient, they will make their way back) - **Guest** (Oh I'm glad you liked it so much! TRANSFORMATIONS!) - **I.9785** (I'm glad you liked the pace we're setting with this fic! Ah, Kytrin and I talked about maybe adding more stories to Perpendicular and making it an anthology, but we're both burned out from writing this fic so if we do, it won't be for a while yet! There is a bit of handwaving with the opening gates and we fudge certain abilities some.) - **Guest** (*smooches*) - **Guest** (Yes he does!) - **Anon** (Uhm. It's usually past midnight whenever I update. So there might be a few discrepancies between hours? I'm not sure why it matters though because the fic updates once every two days regardless of timezones.) - **Avengerika** (It didn't let me send you a message, so here we are! I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter! I hope you'll like this one just as much!)

* * *

 **GUYS WE HAD 65 REVIEWS. EXCUSE ME WHILE I GO BREATHE INTO A PAPER BAG.**

 **HERE IS YOUR WELL DESERVED SNEAK PEEK. JFC. I NEED TO GO LIE DOWN.**

* * *

 _"...mom...?" Her voice whispered, Lucy's gaze riveted away from Natsu._

 _This time a flicker of alarm pushed through Natsu, his eyes widening at the way she seemed to look right through him. Lucy's gaze drifted over towards the cot he normally slept in, her teeth worrying her bottom lip._

 _She looked indecisive, but something called her to the door and her jaw set with determination._

 _Quietly, she crept from bed as if Natsu wasn't sitting directly next to her._

 _"Lucy, wait!" He hissed, reaching out to catch her arm, "Where are you going?"_


	30. Macbeth

**_Act 3_**

 ** _ATTENTION: MSLEAD ILLUSTRATED THIS CHAPTER. YOU CAN FIND IT ON TUMBLR. EITHER ON Mslead's TUMBLR PAGE OR Kytrin's_**

 ** _kytrinXtumblrXcom/post/133175538718/parallels_**

* * *

 ** _30_**

 ** _Macbeth_**

 _"By the pricking of my thumbs,_

 _Something wicked this way comes."_

 ** _― William Shakespeare_ _, Macbeth_**

* * *

 _...Natsu, can you hear me?_

Natsu groaned as he flopped around on his cot, trying to get comfortable. While it was true they were able to move into a slightly bigger apartment, it was still an open floorplan with a single room and adjoining bathroom.

The bed creaked and groaned under his weight as he restlessly tried to find a soft spot to sleep on. But he couldn't deny it was cramped sleeping on the small mattress with the addition of Happy curling in his scarf.

"Natsu," Happy whined in his ear, his paw rubbing at his eyes, "can't you sleep...?"

He let out a gust of air, his hand resting on his stomach and his arm sliding out to support his head. Natsu gave Happy an apologetic look, his cheek twitching, "Sorry pal. I just can't seem to nod off."

There was something bugging him. Something coiling tension in his body and no matter how badly he tried to relax, it just seemed to wind him up more.

And now he was bugging Happy about it.

Natsu glanced over towards Lucy's silent bed, wondering if his creaking and thrashing about had managed to wake her up. He snorted as she snoozed away without a care in the world.

The girl might complain about his snores, but she could saw logs with the best of dragons.

Still, even with her snoring at least he would be able to stretch out on her bed, and it was a lot more comfortable than his cot. Maybe he should just join her! It wasn't like she was taking up the whole bed anyway. She could totally share instead of hogging it all to herself!

With that thought in mind he eased off his cot, mindful to keep Happy secure, and padded over to the bed. He paused to study the unconscious blond for a moment, something warm tickling his chest as he did. She really did look peaceful like that. It made him want to bug her in her sleep or something.

However, in the interest of his own sleep, he carefully peeled the covers back and moved to slither under them. However, the moment he did Lucy shifted and whined softly in her sleep, a frown tugging at her mouth and her brow wrinkling.

He immediately froze, wondering if she'd detected him and was about to wake up, but the way she curled in on herself dispelled that notion. She was dreaming.

And it didn't look like a particularly nice dream either.

"No mom..." She muttered in her sleep, her frown growing more pronounced, and he winced a little. Dreaming about your dead mom had to suck.

He quickly finished climbing into bed with her, glad that Happy had nodded back off, and wondered what to do.

He didn't want to sleep next to her when she was having a nightmare, but he didn't know how to get her out of it short of waking her up either.

He eyed her for a moment and hesitantly reached out to rub his hand over her back. Maybe that would help? He seemed to remember it had helped him whenever Igneel had done it.

He doubted it could hurt anyway.

However, before he could so much as touch her, Lucy's eyes snapped open and Natsu's heart nearly escaped out of his throat.

He snatched his hand away, drawing Happy out of his scarf and nestling him into the pillows, getting a sinking suspicion in his stomach that Lucy was about to be very unhappy with him.

"Uh, Lucy," He asked quietly, still somewhat afraid to disturb the night air around them, or wake up Happy. At least one of them could sleep soundly.

But she didn't say anything to him. Instead she sat up, rubbing the back of her hand against her eyes as she looked towards the door.

"...mom...?" Her voice whispered, Lucy's gaze riveted away from Natsu.

This time a flicker of alarm pushed through Natsu, his eyes widening at the way she seemed to look right through him. Lucy's gaze drifted over towards the cot he normally slept in, her teeth worrying her bottom lip.

She looked indecisive, but something called her to the door and her jaw set with determination.

Quietly, she crept from bed as if Natsu wasn't sitting directly next to her.

"Lucy, wait!" He hissed, reaching out to catch her arm, "Where are you going?"

Before he could snag her sleeve though, something repelled him, pushing his hand away before it could so much as graze her skin. And whatever the reason, she seemed deaf and blind to him.

"Please wait!" Lucy whispered to the phantom only she could see, not even bothering to slide on a pair of slippers and rushing quietly out of the room after the ghost of her mother.

That tension in the air, the one that kept him up.

Natsu's eyes widened as he recognized the soft pulse of magic. It was strange, almost undetectable. But it had the distinct sensation of powerful magic he knew from sensing it in the past. But what kind of magic could influence whatever Lucy's imagination could conjure.

He jumped out of bed and thudded from the room, ignoring Happy's whines.

He skidded to a halt as he got out the door of the building and looked around for Lucy. Her head start meant she'd gotten here just before him and of course she was nowhere immediately in sight.

Thankfully, her scent was still heavy on the night breeze so he hardly even hesitated as he picked up the trail and turned left after her.

He was a little surprised to find she was closer than he'd thought she would be. Apparently whoever had captured her had wanted to get her to this specific spot. And he could see why almost instantly.

It was an archway. He didn't know who had built it, or why, and he didn't really care. It looked old, like a portion of the town that had been forgotten. Thick ivy covered the seemingly innocent structure, but it made Natsu's heart coil in fear. What was important was that it would provide a good place for her to open a gate. Constructing them in existing doorways or archways was always easier for Lucy than not. Something about the right frame of mind.

Fortunately, she wasn't in the right frame of mind yet.

He could hear her entirely one-sided conversation with her mother.

"Are you sure mom?" Lucy asked, hesitation and worry in her voice, and Natsu's heart twisted a little when the invisible phantom apparently gave her the answer she was looking for as a wonderfully happy smile lit up Lucy's features.

It was like no other smile he'd ever seen from her. It was happiness. Pure, untainted, happiness. She must've loved her mother very deeply to have that effect.

A surge of guilt tore through him that he was about to spoil that happiness, but whatever was going on wasn't real, and it would only hurt her more.

His senses tingled as she began the spell needed to open the gate and he slipped forward. He didn't want to startle her and start the chase all over again if he could avoid it.

Instead he eased forward and slipped the scarf from around his neck. He couldn't touch her directly, but this should do the trick and get through to her. He hoped the dragon scales were strong enough to make a connection.

"Hey Lucy!" He called gently, trying to be as inviting as possible, "I need you to wake up now! Something fishy is going on." He managed to sidle up a little closer, "C'mon Luce! I know you can hear me in there!"

In a fluid motion, Natsu coiled his scarf over her head.

Tugging backwards on the ends looped around her shoulders, his eyes flashed through the darkness. Whoever was controlling the spell had to be nearby.

A crease formed on Lucy's brow, her hand lifting to graze across the scaled fabric Natsu draped over her. She shook her head, the gate beginning to half-form in the archway.

"No," She protested, her eyes fixated ahead of her, "My mom is right there! I can finally see her again."

Tears welled in Lucy's eyes, causing Natsu to take in a sharp gasp of breath. He stared at her, his eyes wide as fat droplets trickled over and ran down her smooth cheeks.

"She's right there..."

His heart clenched, his grip on his scarf loosening. Something akin to compassion tore through his chest and made it difficult to breathe. If he was seeing Igneel - what would he do? Stubbornly cling onto the belief he was there? Hold onto those scraps of dreams for as long as possible?

Natsu couldn't blame her and his heart ached anew. Lucy was _crying_. That sight alone was enough for him to push his feelings aside and ground himself in the moment.

A gust of wind, tunneling in from the half-formed gate, snapped them forward. Natsu grunted, his grip tightening around his scarf and his hand digging onto the base of one of Magnolia's prized sakura trees. Her desperation to reach her mother was fueling her magic, tugging them into the unstable gate.

"Lucy!" His grip tightened on the scarf, the only thing tethering her to him. Natsu was thankful the fabric was made from the toughest of dragon scales, otherwise he was sure it wouldn't have been able to withstand holding Lucy from the onslaught of her own magic.

"Your mother isn't there," He gritted through clenched teeth, straining to keep them both where they were, "And if you walk through that gate it won't take you to see your family."

"Lucy, please," He begged her, voice rising over the howling of her magic, trying to take her away. His heart hammered in fear. Fear that he would lose her to something mysterious and never be able to find her again, " _Please_ look at me!"

Jerkily, Lucy's grip tightened on the scarf, her breath growing ragged as she spent her magic trying to escape towards the deception.

For a moment, he thought she was gone.

But slowly, she turned. Inch by inch, her teary eyes meeting his.

"N-natsu?" Her voice trembled, large eyes misty with water, and such a shattered expression on her face, Natsu thought his chest would burst in two.

"Your family is different now, but it's right here in Magnolia," He promised her, his gaze unflinching on hers. Grinding his heels into the dirt, he risked removing his arm from around the branch to hold a hand out to her. His grip on the scarf loosened as the wind began to die down.

He took that to mean her heart was indecisive again.

The choice for her to leave or stay was hers. He couldn't force it. Because whatever magic was preying on Lucy would only return if he forced the issue while she was still vulnerable in her decision. There had to be no doubts in her mind.

"I won't leave," He vowed and reached out to her, palm up, "If you decide you want to travel through that gate, I'll go with you."

Lucy hesitated, torn painfully between Natsu and what she knew was real versus the smiling image of her mother encouraging her to open the gate so they could be together again.

She wanted her mother to be real. Desperately. She missed her so much! Missed the family they had been when she was little. It was a constant ache in her heart and one which had opened again like a fresh wound.

"It is real." Layla murmured encouragingly, and Lucy choked on a sob even as she grabbed hold of Natsu's shirt.

"How can it be real?" She cried, her fists clenching tightly in the fabric of Natsu's shirt. Another thing she knew was real even if she wasn't sure about anything else, "You're dead!"

She jerked when she felt her mother's hand on her shoulder and buried her face in Natsu's chest, "I promise we'll be together again once you cross the gate." Layla soothed, "But you must finish it before your magic runs out."

"How will we be together?" Lucy demanded, stubbornly not budging, "The dead can't come back to life!"

It was a statement that shocked her as soon as she said it.

She'd flung it out there like a little kid daring her parents to explain something that didn't make sense. But as soon as it had left her lips it was like she'd been doused in cold water.

The dead couldn't be brought back to life.

Which meant... there was only one way they could be together again.

"No!" She shouted into Natsu's chest, tears streaming down her face, "You're not real! And if you're not real, your promises aren't!" She shifted enough to glare at the image of her mother, "You're not my mother!" She screamed, as the half formed gate began to collapse in on itself, "I won't open the gate for you! And I swear - whoever you really are - you will pay for this!"

Natsu nearly sagged in relief, his arms coiling tight around Lucy as he watched the gate disappear in a shower of golden sparks. His fingers twisted into Lucy's hair, pressing her to him as her muffled sobs wracked through her entire body.

Now with the spell on Lucy shattered, the lost magic twisted around, leaving a trickle of magic Natsu had felt before and a scent drifting in the wind.

He snarled angrily, fury on behalf of Lucy burning within him. That slimy little narcoleptic...

"Midnight!" He bared his fangs at the darkness, "Hiding out in the shadows isn't your style! Don't you usually like center stage?"

There was a moment of silence, where Natsu thought perhaps he wasn't going to answer, until the man's voice tilted into a light laugh. He still remained hidden a safe distance away, clearly not trusting his chances against him.

After all, Natsu could only detect one scent in the breeze, which meant he had come alone, no doubt on his Master's orders. He wouldn't want to risk bringing Lucy any damage either. Not if he wanted them captured.

"So you sniffed me out like a dog, didn't you End?" He asked, voice echoing around Natsu and making it difficult to pin down, "You realized I was using my Illusion magic, but only after a long time. Are your senses getting dulled?"

"Want me to find you to show you how dull they really are?" Natsu snarled, his eyelids drooping and lifting his nose to catch his scent in the air, "I don't think you'll like what will happen when I get my hands on you."

Lucy trembled in his arms, and Natsu's grip tightened, his mood blackening by the minute.

The very demonic impulse to find Midnight and tear him apart rose within Natsu. He would burn his individual parts to ash for hurting Lucy like this. Black fire bubbled in the back of his throat, aching to be unleashed. To purge the dark mage from the planet.

But he was reluctant to leave her when she was so vulnerable and spent of magic. Just because he didn't smell any more members of Midnight's guild wasn't proof of their absence.

"I think I've had enough fun for tonight, coming here on Rusty Rose's advice made for an interesting evening out to say the least," Midnight's voice faded, an edge to it that Natsu knew was tight consideration, "But I think we'll see one another again soon. The night is waning anyway, and I _do_ hate the dawn."

And just like that, the wind shifted, taking away the man's scent and leaving Natsu alone with Lucy in his arms.

Natsu growled softly in frustration, but Lucy twisted in his arms so she could hug him more tightly had his attention shifting in a moment.

"C'mon Luce." He murmured, and reached down to gently scoop her up into his arms. It broke his heart to see her curling up as she clung to him and sobbed brokenly into his shoulder. It wasn't right. She wasn't supposed to be crying. Especially not like this.

She was supposed to be strong and smiling and always ready to confuse him with a bit of insight or butt heads with him over something. The sight of her any other way made all parts of him growl furiously.

Midnight had made Lucy cry.

He was going to pay very dearly for that.

However, he kept it to himself as he made his way back to their apartment. Unsurprisingly, Happy was awake when he got back, though he was clearly fighting off sleep, and looking very worried.

"What happened Natsu?" The kitten asked, even more concerned at the sight of Lucy in Natsu's arms.

He flew over and gently landed on Natsu's shoulder, reaching out to tenderly rub at Lucy's hair, "What happened?"

"Grimorie Heart and the Oracian Seis happened." Natsu rumbled tensely as he kicked the door closed and carried her over to her bed. She refused to let go of him so he obligingly crawled into the bed with her and wrapped himself around her as much as he could.

"I don't understand." Happy replied as he joined Natsu, upset that Lucy was so upset, and wanted to comfort her as much as he could.

Natsu just shook his head, "We'll talk about it later little buddy." He murmured, gently running his hands up and down Lucy's back and arms, "In the morning."

Happy nodded and snuggled up to Lucy as best he could. He didn't understand, but he could tell Lucy was hurting pretty badly and that was more than enough for him. He gently nuzzled the blond and purred for her as she cried herself to sleep in Natsu's arms.

* * *

 _ **Sorry, there's been a death in the family so I didn't have time to respond to anyone. I promise I'll do them next time! But again, thank you so so SO much for your continued support! You guys gave us another 50 reviews! Oh my goodness that's incredible, and it really helped to brighten my spirits these past couple of days. So I truly, truly appreciate it. Don't forget to check out the illustrated version Kytrin has on tumblr!  
**_

 _ **So again! Here's your well-deserved sneak!**_

* * *

 _"Would you mind," She asked shyly, averting her gaze down to her hands, "If I told you about them?"_

 _His tan fingers closed around hers and he gave her an open smile. His thumb swiped across the back of her hand, over her pink guildmark and moved in a comforting circle._

 _"Tell me everything," He invited._


	31. The Queen of the Damned

**_Act 3_**

 ** _Thank you to everyone who gave me condolances. I really appreciate your kind words_**

* * *

 ** _31_**

 _ **The Queen of the Damned**_

 _"It's an awful truth that suffering can deepen us, give a greater lustre to our colours, a richer resonance to our words."_  
 _―_ Anne Rice, _**The Queen of the Damned** _

* * *

Wind howled through the trees of the badlands, causing their skeletal remains to creak and shudder as they groaned, adding their own voices to the eerie sound. It was a sound of desolation and death.

It was nothing, however, to the malignant fury radiating from the caves located in its mountains.

Deep inside the clack of claws and the sounds of shifting scales rubbing against stone could be heard as the dragons that lived there gathered around their queen. While not a drake, there were none who doubted Motherglare's strength and ferocity.

At least, not normally.

However, at the moment, the gathered nest were uncertain. Mother Glare had gone up against a drake and lost. While it was true that generally no one but another drake could fight against one and expect to win, this drake had been one of those unnatural human half-breeds. There were some who were beginning to doubt her ability to lead if she could not defeat Black Steel.

Even worse, she had been injured, and was still recovering from her wounds due to the aged Grandina, last of the sky dragons, passing away.

Her eyes flashed dangerously, a boiling rage there that wouldn't be quenched. Her anger was ironically not towards the drake that injured her. Instead it was focused on the slippery human girl and the wingless dragon the wench had defended.

End. The whelp she let escape through her talons when he was a boy. She remembered his blood on her claws where she had nearly slashed his throat open and cleaved his head from his shoulders.

How much simpler would it have been if she had managed to succeed in such an endeavor? Had she eliminated End back when he was still a hatchling, they would live in prosperous lands.

A place warm in climate and with excellent hunting.

Her jaws snapped furiously at the air, ignoring the murmurs of the dragons gathered around her or the restless shifting of tails against rock. But an idea struck her, giving her pacing pause. It was a clever plan, one which made her maw stretch over pointed teeth and a growl rumble to life in her chest.

Why couldn't she finish what she had started with End?

As he was now, the beast would stand no chance. He could not shift into his dragon form, and even if he could, he was still tethered to that flimsy slip of a human girl.

If nothing else, she would let her live for that reason alone. At least until End was dead.

"As soon as I recover, I believe it's time to move on from these lands and make a new territory for ourselves in a far more comfortable location," Motherglare announced to her uncertain nest.

"With all of us, End will be unable to fight against us. He may be a drake, but he is without a nest and is vulnerable in his current form," Motherglare purred, smirking as she saw several heads of her nest perk up at the idea of moving some place warmer.

It was common knowledge that Natsu held the best lands. They were rich with elements, his treasure was vast, and even despite his rulings, the humans prospered. Like fat livestock, ready to be snapped up.

"Levia, I want you to take Zirconis and a small scouting wing to survey the borders." Motherglare ordered as she shifted to ease the building pain on one of her injuries, silently cursing Black Steel for it, "Do not cross them. Remain on our side for now. What we need most is information."

"What kind of information are you looking for my queen?" The large blue dragon rumbled, sitting up proudly at having been singled out for a mission.

"We need to know End's weakest point in his boundary." Motherglare replied, "He's unable to transform or patrol, but we would be fools to expect him to be unaware of what takes place within his territory every time he and that human wench venture out of Magnolia."

"It shall be done my queen." Levia rumbled and bowed his head before nodding at Zirconis and two others.

The gathered nest parted as they headed out for their scouting mission. The hope and anticipation was rising by the moment. The nest had been stagnant for some time. There was barely enough food to feed them in a good year, and in a bad one they often went hungry. Without more food there would be no hatchlings, and without those one day the nest would die.

There were many who were excited over the prospect of enough food to have their nest filled with the sounds of squalling, roaring, happy hatchlings.

And they all thought it would be the sweetest revenge to steal it from the one unworthy of being a dragon in the first place.

Now, with faith in Motherglare reinstated, the dragons spread off to scout their scorched lands to find some herbs to treat their Queen's injuries.

-::-

Meanwhile, three people knelt near a river, a heavy canopy of trees overhead.

Every now and then one or all three would look up and glance over their shoulders. Whenever there was a small twig which broke or even a rustle of leaves, all three would tense. They all wore expressions of grim fear, worry and stress on their faces.

The white haired woman with the two men rolled her eyes and sighed after a moment where they both snapped their heads up and behind them in unison.

"Sting, Rogue, if you're going to do that every time a bird chirps, you're going to give yourselves whiplash," Yukino scolded lightly.

"Fat chance of that," Sting said grimly, his eyes slow and hesitant as they grazed across their surroundings.

The river was easily fifty feet wide, with fast moving currents. On one side, where Sting, Rogue and Yukino rested, there was a thick canopy of trees, but little else. And that was only directly on the border of the river. Everywhere else, the ground was twisted and scorched.

"There's barely anything alive over here," Rogue finished the other man's thought. The twins of light and dark, travelling together with a celestial wizard.

The blond man sighed, dragging a hand across his scarred brow, his stomach flipping uncomfortably, "We're literally in the worst part of the world right now. The Badlands. Bad. It's in the title - so yeah, we're a little jumpy."

"The Badlands, hm," Yukino asked, reaching out for Sting's hand and taking it in hers. Her hand covered the top of his knuckles, brushing lightly over a ring decorating his left hand.

"This is the place with dragons all around, isn't it?" Yukino asked.

The two brother's glanced at one another before tensely nodding, "It's said that this land was once beautiful. But it was scorched down by the rage of End."

"Not many people know End's old nest was here," Rogue said quietly, his voice level but sharp eyes on the treeline, "I imagine that is a closely guarded secret."

"But you two know?" Yukino asked, glancing at them for confirmation.

Sting nodded, "We've luckily never met End. But our parents knew Igneel, End's father. They weren't part of the nest, because they could see the writing on the wall for what it was, and got out shortly before the war."

"Otherwise we never would have been here," Rogue finished, his expression grim.

Yukino sighed, having known part of this story from quiet stories in the past, huddled around a campfire to keep warm. The two she travelled with were nomadic dragons. Dragons without territories, nests, or were many like them, but often they were unable to live for very long because of their inability to nest.

Without roots, any tree would die. Yukino, Sting and Rogue all knew they skated by on borrowed time. One day they would come across a threat too large they could not run from.

What choice did they have but to stay on the borders as close as they could? Neither Sting nor Rogue were drakes.

But neither dragon ever dared to so much as put a toe over the line to End's territory. Even though where they stood now, they could easily throw a rock into it from this distance.

At that moment Sting's ears twitched as a familiar sound reached them and he suddenly paled in horror, going nearly as white as his wife's hair.

"No..." He breathed, and watched as his brother went paler than usual as well, "You can't be serious. Of all the times... they pick _now_ to patrol this area?"

"That's the least of our worries Sting." Rogue growled as he got to his feet, "I can hear more than one wingbeat."

Yukino gasped softly, fear clutching her own heart at the prospect. One dragon was frightening enough, unless they were the two with her. And a single dragon, provided it wasn't a drake, could be dealt with. Two was difficult, but possible. More than that was too much though. Especially as her own celestial magic didn't do much more than annoy enemy dragons.

"So can I." Sting confirmed grimly, and scowled as he tugged Yukino deeper into the underbrush. If they were supremely lucky it was possible the patrol would fly past and not catch their scent.

Unfortunately, they weren't that lucky.

Sting winced as he took in the size of the lead dragons as they landed. He could tell they weren't drakes by the way they moved. They lacked the self-assured swagger drakes were known for. But they were still enormous and powerfully built.

Fighting even one of them would be a pain.

And, of course...

"I smell a human." The large green one announced suddenly as he sat up, sniffing the air with an eagerness that made Sting's stomach roil even as a growl built in his chest.

He knew that look. He'd seen it more than once on dragons who preferred humans as prey.

Rogue's eyes flashed over towards his brother, his hand immediately drawing around his sister-in-law's arm to pull her to safety if they had to. They were in bad shape for a fight, but together he and his brother were tricky enough to take on most enemies.

Even if that meant evading a patrol of dragons.

"Oh, and it's a woman too," The green dragon continued, its tongue rolling out from its mouth to sample the air. He let out a happy growl, "It's been so long since we've had good food. Human women are the _best._ "

Yukino's hands drifted down to her side, fingers brushing against the warm metal which would harness her magic. She may not have been able to do much in a fight, but she wasn't about to go down without giving it her all.

Sting's eyes flashed around, trying to find any exit. Any way which didn't mean certain death.

And then his eyes fell to across the river.

The only dragon these ones would fear was End. They wouldn't risk running over the border for a tasty meal. But the question was, were _they_ willing to risk it?

Certain death or probable death?

He looked at his brother, and Rogue shook his head violently, already seeing where his twin's thoughts were going and in staunch protest.

The heavy thuds of dragons nearby shook the ground, and the trees groaned as thick tails slithered through the brittle limbs. Sting motioned wildly at his brother, miming a gesture of extreme violence, one his brother repeated with a rude motion tacked onto the end.

Yukino rolled her eyes, getting the gist of their plan between them thanks to their frantic hand motions, and deciding to make the choice on her own.

She sprinted out under the tree foliage, tearing herself from Sting and heading straight for the river. They would have argued forever until they were found, and Yukino knew that with her scent around, they would be able to track them all across their lands.

There would be no outrunning them, which only left outsmarting them.

"Oho! There she is! And the perfect age! My favorite!"

"Yuki!" Sting shouted in alarm as she ran out into the river. It wasn't very deep here, but that was not the point! His eyes narrowed to slits as he saw that green scaled bastard eagerly bounce after her, and a bare moment after she'd broken cover he tore out as well, transforming as he did, and he tackled the other dragon with a roar of rage.

Of course, it alerted the rest of the patrol, something he was sure Rogue was going to scold him about later, but he didn't care.

"She is _mine_!" He roared furiously and blasted Zirconis with a roar at point blank range before getting hit with a tail swipe that sent him flying.

"What's this?" Levia growled menacingly, a smirk curling his muzzle, "A white dragon that smells half human? Oh how wonderful! A little practice on hunting mongrels!"

Suddenly Levia and all the other enemy dragons grunted as they were flattened to the ground, and Sting whipped his head around where his wonderful, _beautiful_ , wife was standing on End's side of the territory with a defiant look on her face and Libra in front of her.

"Not today!" She called, "Not unless you want to brave End's territory!"

Rogue groaned at the sight of Yukino and his brother's star struck expression. As much as he hated to admit it, right now they had only one choice left available to them. And it was the one laid out by Yukino.

"Come on, she's given us enough of a window," Rogue shouted at his brother's transformed state. He slid into his shadowy form, skating up white scales to form between Sting's wings.

The white dragon nodded and twisted around, even as the dragons slowly began to fight off the spirit's influence and rose from the ground.

Still, it provided enough time for them to get to the otherside, Sting transforming down into his smaller shape, his eyes hard and tense on the dragons milling around opposite.

The green dragon let out a disgruntled sound, his dismayed shouting clear over the border, his desire to eat completely overruled by the ground the dragons stood on.

Levia snarled at them, "You escaped for now, but do you really believe you'll be safe over there? End may be a human for now, but not even he knows a letter in the word 'mercy.'"

Sting blinked, his eyes flashing over to Yukino, and then sliding towards his brother. That told them enough that the dragons, while angry, were not willing to cross into End's lands.

And more importantly, it told them that End himself was not able to flatten them with a single claw anymore. If he was trapped in his human form, then that meant they were probably safe enough to rest for a while before moving on to safer boundaries.

At least for the time being.

Sting felt Yukino's hand slide into his and the weight of her gentle smile warmed him.

"We'll take that risk," Sting shouted across the river, his wife by his side and his brother by his other.

After all, trapped between a rock and a hard place - what other choice did they have but to keep skating on?

Together the three of them turned and headed deeper into End's territory, none of them willing to risk lingering long enough to encourage the wrath of the watching dragons. Staying long enough for End to find them was also out of the question.

Which meant they had to throw themselves into the belly of the beast.

And pray for the best.

-::-

When Lucy stirred, she awoke to the sounds of fervent shushing and the smell of something burning.

A slice of sunlight burned across her eyelids and she groaned, feeling her body ache in stiff and unpleasant ways.

She was alone in bed, her eyelids feeling abnormally heavy as she remembered how she had completely fallen apart the previous night, sobbing into Natsu's arms.

And as far as she knew, he had stayed up and held her the whole time.

Body stiff and joints mechanical, Lucy managed to pry her sluggish limbs from the sucking embrace of her comforter. She didn't even want to get up today after the night she had.

But the swearing she heard in the kitchen frightened her, and she slowly began to suspect Natsu was in danger of burning the house down.

She was treated to the sight of Natsu standing over smoking eggs, with Happy smothered in his pink hair and trying to shout out directions at Natsu with limited success.

It was then she noticed he was missing his patented scarf. He looked strange without it on his person, his neck suspiciously bare before her eyes, and wondered where it had gone. Something tickled her back, and she realized with a start of surprise that it was still draped around her shoulders.

She must've made some kind of sound because Natsu looked up at her just then, and despite how miserable she felt she couldn't help a small smile at the small pout on his lips, and the faintly sheepish look in his eyes.

"Aw, I wanted to surprise you Lucy!"

He'd wanted to surprise her? With breakfast?

The gesture was so sweet that it actually helped dull the pain, and the catastrophe he was in the process of creating was so very Natsu that she actually managed a weak laugh.

She shuffled into the kitchen all the way and gently kissed his cheek as she took the frying pan away, "Thanks Natsu." She murmured, truly meaning it, "I really appreciate that."

She nudged him a little, an echo of her usual personality showing through in the face of this distraction, "But maybe I should show you how to properly make eggs first?"

Natsu blinked, fingers brushing against his cheek curiously and then grinned at the soft teasing, relieved beyond belief to hear it. He nodded, "Sounds good Luce." He replied, for once not whining at her about how he could do it or anything, and stepped aside, "Just tell me what to do."

His smile broadened in the face of her surprise over his unusual compliance, but he didn't elaborate. Maybe later he could explain what it meant for nestmates to take care of each other. And there was no mistake. She was nest. But for right now she was looking a little happier, so he would leave it.

Thankfully Lucy didn't ask him about it either. She just smiled a little more, making him preen a little that he'd gotten her to, and nodded at the fridge, "Okay. Get out some bacon then. We'll start with that."

Natsu blinked a little, wondering why they would do that, but nodded and went to retrieve the bacon while she dumped out the burnt eggs.

He couldn't help sneaking glances at her as he did though. Apart from his worry about her, and he thought maybe a nice day in front of the lacrimatron would be in order, he couldn't help just noticing her.

Not that he hadn't seen her in the mornings before, but the sight of his scarf wrapped loosely around her shoulders like that kept catching his eye.

No one else had ever worn it, and it was saturated with his scent. It was kind of like he was in two places at once and still had his arms around her. Which was stupid and corny, but that didn't make it less true. Or stop him from liking it.

She looked good in his scarf, and he liked watching her while she was wearing it. That was good enough for him.

"Natsu?" Lucy questioned, breaking him from his thoughts and reaching out her hand for the pack of bacon he was close to melting in his grasp, "You got it?"

He snapped out of his thoughts and nodded, nearly choking on his tongue as he tore it open with his teeth and passed it over.

"Gross, you know we have knives and scissors for that sort of thing," Lucy chided, a little more color returning to her cheeks. Natsu just flashed her a roguish grin and cocked his head.

"Where's the fun in that?" He purred at her, returning to their cooler so he could retrieve some eggs for Happy to crack.

He was terrible at delicately fracturing the shell and splitting it apart. And with the weird thoughts running through his head over Lucy in his scarf right now, he was bound to smash the entire egg into the bowl, shell and all.

They worked together in comfortable silence, Lucy occasionally giving him a soft quip and instruction on what to do. The normalcy of the task seemed to help her ground herself past her grief again, and he complied without a word. For the most part.

"Lucyyyy," He whimpered, "hungryyyyy..."

Lucy laughed softly at his antics, the ache in her chest easing a little at them, "You're always hungry." She teased, but slid his omelet onto his plate with half the bacon easily enough.

She'd pleaded with Mirajane for a few cooking lessons early on so she could cook things in large enough quantities for a dragonslayer to be satisfied with and not completely break their budget in the process. This was one of the results. And she was rather proud of it.

She collected her own, much smaller one, onto her own plate and curled her free hand in his, "C'mon." She murmured, "Let's break the rules and eat in front of the TV today."

Natsu grinned a bit at her weird word for the lacrimatron, though he agreed it was kind of a mouthful, "Yeah!" He exclaimed and rushed into the other room with Happy so they could set up a nest of blankets and pillows so they'd be comfortable.

By the time Lucy got there she had to giggle at how quickly he and Happy had built something that was on its way to being a pillow fort.

Maybe she would introduce them to the concept.

"C'mon Lucy!" Natsu grinned from his spot, "There are movies on!"

"Alright, alright!" Lucy laughed, amused at how much like an excited kid Natsu could be, and sat down with him.

She snuggled into him a little as they began eating, needing the contact. Last night had torn open all of her old scars in the worst way possible, and she knew herself well enough to know she wasn't anything like fine yet.

"Thanks Natsu." She murmured as they finished their food and settled in for some movie watching, and was rewarded with an arm around her waist pulling her into a gentle half hug.

"You're nest Lucy." He growled softly, and smiled down at her, "Nest takes care of each other."

And he would do his best to take care of her while she licked her wounds.

That was a promise.

She gave him a faint look of surprise but leaned into his touch. A smile worked across her face, sinking into his warmth while Happy curled up into a ball for a nap.

She knew he wanted to question her. To ask her if she was okay. But instead he kept his eyes ahead of him, locked onto the movie playing in front of her.

She hesitantly looped her index and middle finger around his ring and pinky finger, catching his attention when she curled it towards her.

"It's like I lost her all over again," She murmured quietly against his shoulder.

His grip tightened around her hand, this time shifting to thread all their fingers together.

He turned his attention towards her, his intense gaze focused wholly on her. And she imagined that despite his childish ooing and aaing over the movie, it always had been.

But he said nothing, his full focus only on her and whatever she wanted to say.

Lucy's lips trembled, and she found herself wanting to tell him everything.

She swallowed thickly , her eyes lifting to his.

"Would you mind," She asked shyly, averting her gaze down to her hands, "If I told you about them?"

His tan fingers closed around hers and he gave her an open smile. His thumb swiped across the back of her hand, over her pink guildmark and moved in a comforting circle.

"Tell me everything," He invited.

So she did. Maybe it was the sleepy morning, or the silly pillow fort. Maybe it was their fluffy companion, watching them quietly from his spot on Lucy's lap. Maybe it was how Natsu held her hand and drank in every word she said.

But she told him everything, from the time before her mother had fallen sick, to the way her health deteriorated, and finally how she lost her relationship with her father.

She told him of the good and bad times, of the scraped knees and laughter.

She told him how deeply she missed her parents every day, or how she regretted never fully being able to make amends with her father.

He didn't say a single word the entire time. Natsu just listened.

There was no need for him to say anything.

And by the time she was done telling her story, something loosened in her chest.

The old, half healed wounds began to scab over.

"Your mom sounds like she was really nice Lucy." Happy said from where he was curled up in her lap when she was done, "I bet that's why you're so nice!"

Lucy let out a somewhat watery laugh, and gently scratched behind the kitten's ears, "Thanks Happy. She really was nice." She brushed lightly at the tears stinging her eyes again. They'd surfaced more than once during her story, but this time they were at least bittersweet instead of wholly sad. That was a step in the right direction.

Natsu chuckled a bit, "I think you nailed it there buddy." He glanced at Lucy, his expression softening when he did. He didn't have to ask if she was feeling better. He could tell she was.

He wasn't sure if she would be up for anything for a couple of days, but that was alright. She was healing and that was the important part.

Lucy opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted when there was a thump outside their door, and a moment later Erza came crashing through it with Wendy tucked under one arm and a box in her other hand.

"Behold Lucy!" Erza cried stridently, seemingly not caring that she'd just broken into their apartment or that they were less than ten feet away, "We have come to cheer you up!"

"Wha-?" Lucy gawked.

"Mira helped me bake a cake for you Lucy!" Wendy smiled from where she was dangling in the redhead's arm, "I thought it might help you feel better!"

Lucy was, once again, prevented from replying when Gray staggered in behind them, "Damnit Erza!" He griped, "Why the hell did you punch me?"

"I'm sorry." Erza apologized absently, "That was an accident. I saw a naked man outside Lucy's apartment and feared the worst."

"Why the hell would you even think that?!"

"Perhaps if you remembered to wear your clothing it wouldn't be an issue!"

Lucy gaped at the back and forth, trying to bite back her laughter at the absurdity that was her friends, but the sight of Erza calmly swinging Wendy around as she berated Gray was just too much.

She abruptly burst into howls of laughter, "Oh god!" She gasped, clutching her belly, "You guys..." She took one look at the way they'd frozen when she started laughing and abruptly dissolved into fresh peals.

Natsu grinned at the sight of them, pleased the guild had decided to come at Erza's beckoning.

She really was a force to be reckoned with.

Earlier in the day he had sent Happy off to the guild to let them know about Midnight. He hadn't wanted to leave Lucy alone, but there was no way he was going to be able to leave the incident alone. The guild needed to know as soon as possible.

This was their reaction to one of their own being hurt, huh?

He had to say, he liked it.

Lucy was laughing again, her fingers loose in his hand, but still close.

Something had shifted between them in the intimacy of her baring her feelings to him. Natsu couldn't pinpoint the emotion precisely, but he felt like there was a new change. Or at least an evolving one.

So as the guild made themselves at home, Erza slicing them generous pieces of cake, allowing a nice piece for Lucy, Wendy, and herself - Gray crowded in with everyone else who could manage to fit in their tiny, one room apartment.

Natsu knew Gray was checking over the house, making sure there wasn't a chance someone could break in. Gajeel was discreetly strengthening their locks while Levy distracted Lucy with an adventure novel about a boy on a quest to search for magical gems with his strange dog.

Natsu appreciated the team effort, and he knew Lucy did as well.

And soon, her new family helped soothe the pain left behind by the memories of her old one, gathered together and close in their cramped room. They elbowed one another for room, and while Natsu almost got lured into a fight several times with Gray, he stubbornly refused to budge from Lucy's side.

* * *

 _ **Thank you again to everyone who reviewed! I forgot to update this sooner, so I'm hurrying past the review responses again. SORRRRRRRRY. I got distracted and I have work in the morning! Let us know what you thought!**_

* * *

 _If the proof of what Gray was looking at hadn't been staring him in the face he would have never believed it. Ever._

 _Unfortunately, he could not deny the evidence he was presented with._

 _Natsu, the terrible demon dragon himself, was in love._


	32. 1001 Arabian Nights

_**Act 3**_

 _ **IT'S MSLEAD'S BIRTHDAY, SO HERE IS AN EXTRA CHAPTER!**_

* * *

 _ **32**_

 _ **1001 Arabian Nights**_

 _"A truth once seen by a single mind ends up by imposing itself on the totality of human consciousness."_

 _ **―**_ Anonymous _ **, The Arabian Nights**_

* * *

If the proof of what Gray was looking at hadn't been staring him in the face he would have never believed it. Ever.

Unfortunately, he could not deny the evidence he was presented with.

Natsu, the terrible demon dragon himself, was in love.

He hadn't believed it the first time he'd seen it. There was just no way. He'd, marginally, been able to wrap his head around the idea of Natsu being on somewhat friendly terms with them, but the idea of him being in love was just ridiculous. Heck, it wasn't all that long ago he would've scoffed at the idea of Natsu even being _capable_ of the emotion.

However, in the weeks since Lucy and the others had reported the dark guilds were interested in her he'd begun seeing evidence he just couldn't refute.

Previously, Natsu had spent as little time as possible around Lucy. He hadn't even wanted to look at her. Once they'd become friends he'd been friendlier, but the distance had still been there. Now, ever since the incident with Midnight, they were nearly inseparable. The newly dubbed dragonslayer even seemed to enjoy going out shopping with her.

Sure he growled and grumbled and whined but everyone could tell it was mostly for show as he always had a little smile on his face as he followed Lucy out with Happy. Sometimes even taking her hand as they walked around.

Nor could the dragonslayer seem to keep his eyes off her. If he'd been allergic to looking at her before it seemed like all he did now was sneak glances at her either openly or out of the corner of his eye. It was kind of hilarious to watch actually. He'd never known Natsu was capable of that kind of subtlety.

Of course, this also presented a problem.

Gray knew he didn't know the particulars of Natsu's past, but he knew enough to figure Natsu probably didn't have the first clue about what to do with a woman. Let alone a woman showing as much interest in him as Lucy was. And there was no doubt in his mind that Lucy was interested. She had a soft look in her eyes whenever she dealt with Natsu, even at his most obnoxious, that he recognized very well.

It didn't help that Natsu was an idiot and probably had no idea Lucy was even showing that kind of attention.

He didn't get Lucy's taste, but if she was really invested in the dragonslayer she was going to need all the help she could get. Maybe it was time he had a talk with Natsu about it?

Gray wavered with indecision. Was it really any of his business to push it one way or another? Sure, Juvia had placed a pretty nice sum of jewel into the betting pool Cana had started on the sly over when Natsu and Lucy would end up together.

But helping out Natsu sort of made him sick to his stomach.

They were frenemies at this point, but even Gray had to admit it was sort of getting pathetic how Natsu would perk right up whenever he saw Lucy enter a room. Or even how his entire mood could shift whenever she brought him a job or bribed him from a fight with a promise of food.

Really he had no idea what he was doing.

But it wasn't like Natsu would even listen to him anyway.

He watched with just a hint of disgust as he saw Natsu eyeing Lucy openly where she sat at the bar, chatting with Erza and Levy over the latest Heart Kreuz fashions. A subconscious smile was working its way over Natsu's lips, and he was only halfway paying attention to Happy's words in his ear from where the kitten was perched on his shoulder with a fish.

Gross.

Oh for the love of the first master, he had to put a stop to this before Natsu started etching his initials with Lucy in a tree or something. Gray couldn't suffer through this agony any longer.

Telling himself he was doing this for his own sanity and not Natsu's, Gray got up, snagged the dragon by the back of his vest and dragged his choking ass out of the guild without so much as another word.

"Ack! Gray! What the hell are you doing!?" Natsu struggled, kicking his legs as Gray dropped him out of the guild. He was up in a tower of flames in an instant, but Gray just rolled his eyes at the show. That was all it really was now.

Maybe in the past it would have been intimidating, a worry that End was about to start a deadly rampage.

But now Gray just knew Natsu was pitching a fit over being thrown out like a smelly pair of shoes.

"Easy flamingo-face, I just wanna talk to you," Gray announced, his arms folded as if that gave him all the right in the world.

"And you couldn't have done it inside?" Natsu demanded, "With y'know, walls and crap? You had to drag me out by my neck?"

"It's not something we should be talking about in front of Lucy." Gray drawled, mild amusement coloring his voice, "Unless you want me to ask about you mooning over her in there?" He smirked.

Natsu went still at that, his heart freezing for a moment as he processed Gray's words and, predictably, exploded, "What're you talkin' about Dairy Queen?" He demanded, a bright blush creeping up his cheeks.

Gray raised an eyebrow and he smirked, "You know, if you're going to deny something you should probably actually deny it."

"Shut up!" Natsu huffed, "I'm not mooning over Lucy alright! Your ice has obviously frozen what passes for your brain!"

Gray beat back his instinctive surge of temper, and his smirk widened as he deliberately stretched lazily instead.

"Really?" He purred, "So you're not watching her every minute? Or practically glued to her hip?" He cocked his head slightly as his smirk turned into a wicked grin, "And I haven't seen you light up whenever she enters a room? Or her do the same when you do?"

Natsu had his mouth open, ready to give a scorching retort, but blinked when he registered Gray's last words, "She does?" He asked, a slightly dopey smile tugging at his lips.

"Okay. I just felt my lunch come up," Gray rolled his eyes, "Good grief... could you have it any worse?" He snorted, "Or be any more obvious?"

"I am not obvious!" Natsu protested hotly, his entire body lighting up like a firework, contrary to his statement. His face was as red as one of his flames.

And then he realized what he said as soon as he caught sight of Gray's smirking face.

"I mean, that's not- shut up!" Natsu spluttered, feeling as if he had been taken completely by surprise.

"Alright, alright," Gray groaned, throwing his hands up in surrender, "Try to deny it all you like if that makes you feel better."

"Hell, I could be wrong," He dropped his hands into his pockets, realizing belatedly he had lost his pants. Gray wondered where they wandered off to.

Gray was more surprised Natsu hadn't even commented on it yet.

Perhaps he was really captivating his full attention for once. A feat he formerly thought was impossible.

"But one thing I know I'm right about," Gray jabbed a finger into Natsu's chest, "There's something working its way between the two of you, so you better man up and figure out your feelings."

"What's there to figure out?" Natsu grumbled, his eyes twitching in frustration. He didn't see what Gray's plan was to bring him outside and tell him all of this.

Sure, he cared about Lucy. A lot. Fine, there was no denying that. She was nest after all. And Natsu wasn't even going to try to figure out how Lucy had managed to creep in through _all_ of his defenses as effortlessly as she had.

Lucy was still as weird as the day he met her with her weird words and references to things. It didn't help that she'd taken her place as the Guild Chronicler, as Makarov's request, and was always going around with one book or another in her hands when they weren't on a job. He'd seen her carry one book around in particular at times it was a wonder she ever left it alone. But it would often disappear before Natsu could get a good look at it. Although it hadn't really made an appearance in quite some time now that he thought about it.

Still, as the Guild Chronicler, it didn't surprise him she guarded all of her writings jealously. If it was anything like a dragon hoarded their treasure, then it was a wonder he even saw the tomes.

However, even with all of her weirdness, Natsu couldn't help but be drawn to her. It was like he was hyper aware of her presence, and at first he thought perhaps that was because of the bond. But it hadn't so much as tickled in months.

Perhaps even longer.

Natsu had lost track of when he last felt it. But for whatever reason, he still felt compelled to follow her wherever she went. Especially after the incident with Midnight. So he did, and he was content with it.

For the first time in centuries, he was happy.

He didn't want anything else besides what he was experiencing now.

As greedy, brash and and selfish as he was - and he was still all of those things, Natsu didn't want to be greedy with her.

He was afraid if he took too much, all of the good things which had happened to him since she came into his life would disappear. He was terrified of losing what he had gained.

Natsu didn't have room for 'love' in his life - whatever that even meant. He wasn't sure what ideas Gray was spouting, but it made no sense to him.

Sure, he knew the particulars, but for all Natsu's time alive, he had never once experienced anything close to the love shared between two people. At least not of _that_ nature.

His face burned red at the thought.

Yeah he _so_ wasn't going to get into that with frostbite.

"Plenty." Gray replied, breaking Natsu out of his thoughts, and fixing him with a knowing look, "Trust me on this. You don't want to let the chance pass you by. Lucy's a gorgeous woman, inside and out, and if I wasn't very happily married I'd be trying to get her to look my way the way she looks at you."

He shrugged, deciding he'd pushed it as much as he was going to be able to today, "Just think about it flame brain." He said over his shoulder as he headed back for the guild door, glancing around for his clothes as he went.

Natsu snorted as he watched Gray go, "Shows what you know." He muttered, "Lucy doesn't look any different now."

Though he couldn't deny that she was gorgeous. A fact he'd been noticing more and more since he'd stopped snarling at her all the time. Particularly since one job where she'd wound up naked. That had been great. Not just for the view, but because it had finally tipped Leo into making one of his cheesy, over the top, declarations about her beauty resulting in the lion spirit nearly getting a coconut to the face.

That alone had left him cackling for several minutes even if it meant Lucy had robbed him of his shirt for a while.

He shook his head, shaking the memory off, and followed Gray back inside. Droopy drawers didn't know what he was talking about. Things were fine the way they were. It wasn't like Lucy was in love with him anyway.

He didn't really notice the way his entire being lit up as he went inside and Lucy ran up to him with a smile, one he couldn't help returning.

"Hey!" She exclaimed breathlessly, a happy grin on her face, "Everything alright? I was a little worried when Gray dragged you out like that."

"Huh?" Natsu crossed his arms and smirked cheekily, "Oh yeah right. As if there's anything to worry about!" He laughed.

"Gray couldn't beat me any day of the week," He taunted at the ice mage, who gave him a look which could freeze the sun itself. Natsu however remained unaffected.

But stupid Gray, his words had penetrated through Natsu's skull. Now he couldn't help but watch the way Lucy's lips curved up. They were full and glossy, with just a hint of pink to them. The sweet smile parting her lips made them look like soft petals.

Stupid Gray.

Stupid, stupid, stupid Gray.

Why was he thinking of this stuff now?

It wasn't the first time he thought of it though. Not if he was honest.

There was one time before. Right before they were attacked after meeting Wendy for the first time.

They had argued about something stupid. Deers. But then afterwards... something had drawn him in closer to her. Natsu swallowed thickly, his eyes dropping down to Lucy's plump mouth, his fangs biting down on the side of his tongue. It was a desperate attempt to ground himself, and he was lucky enough that it worked.

Still, it wasn't enough to fully uncoil the tension in his body, so he opted instead to distract himself.

"What's up? We get a new job?" He asked her with more eagerness than he usually displayed. He was intent on finding something to occupy his time. Desperately.

Lucy laughed at Natsu, her heart melting a bit at the sight of his excitement. He really was adorable when he got like that. Like an excited puppy. It made her want to snuggle him or something equally ridiculous, and every time she couldn't help wondering where her cranky dragon had gone.

It was true the insights from her book had initially helped her to understand him better, but she hadn't actually treated him any differently than she would've without the knowledge. She was the same way with everyone else in the guild. She never used what she knew outside of better understanding her friends. It never really crossed her mind to.

Levy thought that was probably why the book had picked her in the first place, but that was neither here nor there. That was why she had locked it in her nightstand in the bottom drawer. She wouldn't read even a page more of it until she was ready to tell Natsu about it.

"Well, technically it's your turn to pick." She grinned, "But I spotted a couple that might be fun." She held up a pair of flyers, "One involves helping out at a festival. Wendy wants to go with us on that one. The other is investigating some weird happenings at a village in the mountains. Something about the local men vanishing in the night."

Natsu's eyes widened at the choices. On the one hand, the festival would surely be a lot of fun, and they probably wouldn't have to work for all of it so they'd be able to enjoy it too. And as much as he'd never admitted it...he really loved festivals. They blew up fireworks and all kinds of stuff. They were great.

On the other hand, there was a really high chance he'd get to throw down with whatever was causing the disappearances, and he always loved a good fight.

He whined softly with indecision as he looked between them, "Wow Luce... you really did find some good ones!"

He stared from one flyer to the next, as if trying to determine something to jump out at him. He growled in frustration, looking increasingly more tied up over what to do.

Whatever he picked, they would have to give their absolute all otherwise it would look bad on the guild. Natsu didn't even stop to wonder when he had started to care so much. His temporary membership had somehow morphed into permanent residency. Natsu didn't question it.

Instead he plucked both from her hands and waved them in the air.

"Both," He announced.

"Both?" Lucy questioned, looking surprised. Her mouth seemed to open in protest, but Natsu cut her off.

"Yes, both. Both is good," Natsu said simply.

He shoved the flyer for the festival in her face, "The festival doesn't even start for the next two weeks! We can do the other job and be back in plenty of time!"

Enthusiasm shone on his face, fervent and clear.

So much in fact, Lucy felt herself caving under the thousand watt force of his smile.

"Fine, but the next two jobs I get to pick!" She announced.

Natsu huffed and smirked right back at her, "Whatever, like you didn't pick these fliers out?" He challenged, "Don't think I didn't see that job about the _giant flaming spider!"_

Lucy's cheeks flushed, caught, "Wha- but that's-!"

 _"Perfect!"_

"So why don't you pick out that one instead?" Lucy huffed at Natsu, crossing her arms. It had the effect of accentuating her breasts, and Natsu's eyes flashed down for a traitorous second.

Playing his distraction cool, he replied with the first, honest response that came to his head aside from his own random, immature hormones.

He gave her a look as if she were a very slow turtle, his hands dropping into his white scarf and the other sliding a thumb into the belt around his hips.

"You don't like spiders," He answered simply, "So we're not going. Duh."

Lucy blushed at that, unable to refute that kind of logic, and ridiculously pleased that he felt that way, "Thanks." She smiled at him, letting her gratitude and happiness shine through.

She resisted the urge to lean in and give him a kiss for it as well. Though she was tempted to do it anyway. She'd found she quite liked giving him kisses like that. Though the thought of doing it in public, where everyone would see and make a big production of it, was mortifying. Natsu would probably go as red as his scales too.

So she firmly pushed that line of thought away and grinned, "Might as well go get packed up then. The rent won't pay itself."

Sometimes she wondered if Natsu would be willing to dip into his hoard to help them keep their cozy little apartment, or even get a better one, but every time the thought crossed her mind she dismissed it. That was up to him and she knew how dragons were. Besides, they were doing fine on their own. Even if he did seem to have developed a habit of crashing in her bed lately. Lucy wasn't even a little ashamed to admit she was a heat vampire and slunk in close to Natsu during the colder nights.

"Aye!" Happy exclaimed excitedly and landed on Natsu's shoulder. The kitten had thoroughly bonded to his dragonslayer and the two were nearly inseparable. It was cute. When Happy wasn't driving her up the wall.

Which, considering who his 'parent' was... happened frequently.

"Yeah!" Natsu agreed enthusiastically and curled his hand gently into hers to tug her along, "I bet we can get there and back in a week!"

"Probably more like ten days." Happy smirked.

"Hey! Who's side are you on?"

"I'm a cat, I don't have a side," Happy said cheekily, his tail flicking around to rub at Natsu's nose. The kitten was still very small and would remain that way for at least the next year or so according to Lily.

"I have salmon in the fridge at home," Lucy bribed, causing the feline to gasp and set small paws on Natsu's cheek so he could look around at her.

"Lucy's side," He said immediately, causing Natsu to grumble under his breath.

"Traitor."

Lucy laughed, her eyes flashing down to where Natsu's tan hand was still curled gently around hers. His grip was strong and rough, calloused from years of combat and manipulating flames.

But when he held her hand, he was gentle.

He didn't seem to mind, or even notice but there were some things Lucy couldn't help but pay attention to. Especially when Natsu did uncharacteristically sweet things like hold her hand, or resist taking a certain job because it might make her upset.

No matter how 'fun.'

That was still subjective in his rather insane mind.

"You know Natsu, to get there and back in time for the festival, we're going to have to ride a train," Lucy announced to him, hating to have to break that news to him, but knowing she was going to have to anyway.

"That's okay, I can get Wendy to cast Troia on me before we leave, and then use some of that weird stuff we got from your world that seems to work really well," Natsu didn't seem too opposed by the idea.

Lucy didn't have the heart to tell him they were almost out. It would take another trip to her world soon to replenish her supply of motion sick medication. And it was impossible for it to work nearly as well as Wendy's magic anyway. At least it made travel more comfortable for Natsu.

"Alright." She agreed giving him a smile, "We should probably head back to my world for a day or two soon though. At least to check the mail and make sure everything's alright."

There was no real sense in risking becoming a missing person or something after all. At least not until she could turn her money into something portable and bring it to Earthland. After she finished getting Jellal the engineering books he'd wanted anyway.

This world was her home now, and though she was proud of how she was paying her way she saw no reason not to spend the money she had on her friends or on making life a little more comfortable here.

Besides... turning it all into gold or something would mean she could go back any time without getting tangled up in problems with being 'dead'.

"Sure." Natsu agreed absently as he began rifling through the pack they still shared, "We should have enough jewel after the festival to last a while, so we can go then!"

"I wish I could go." Happy sulked around a mouthful of fish.

"Sorry Happy." Lucy said apologetically, "I just don't know what being in a world without magic would do to you. You're practically made of the stuff."

"I know... But I still wanna see it."

Lucy reached over and rubbed his ears, "What if we brought back more pictures and some samples of the kind of fish we have there?"

"Would you really?!" Happy exclaimed, "That would be fantastic!"

Natsu grinned, slinging the pack back onto his opposite shoulder, deciding to wait until they got back to their place so he wasn't trying to juggle both the bag and a cat.

In truth he was a little hesitant about returning back to Lucy's homeworld. Last time they arrived there they had been followed and it resulted in Lucy being shot.

He wasn't a fan of not being able to roast people waving guns in his face. But it wasn't like they could just ignore the problem. They would have to deal with it eventually. And the sooner it was handled, the less they would have to worry about something nasty waiting for them on the other side.

It couldn't have been a coincidence that Lucy was chased into this world and then followed again. Even on this side people were hunting her thanks to her unique abilities.

Ugh it was frustrating. Life had gotten so much more difficult since Lucy slammed into his life. But at least it was interesting.

His smile spread as they turned onto Strawberry Street.

With a little maneuvering, they managed to evade their landlady and slip into their room. There, Natsu began to immediately throw clothing all over the place to pack away while Lucy more sedately folded her own neatly.

"If you just bunch up your stuff, I won't be able to fit my clothes in there!" Lucy admonished. It was an argument they had almost every time they went everywhere on a job, but it always played out just in the same way.

"So? you pack way too many clothes anyway! Why do you need so many?" Natsu glanced at her as he reluctantly began to mash his clothes into a shape vaguely resembling a fold. It was done with great reluctance, but at least it would give her enough room.

"I do not pack too many! You just don't pack enough! We have plenty of clothes for you so you don't have to wear just one outfit a week!"

"It's a pain in the butt, I don't have to worry about clothes at all when I'm in my other form," Natsu whined

"Well you can't walk around naked Natsu."

This time however, Natsu seemed to pause. His eyes flashed over to where Lucy was gathering their toiletries and zipping them into a neat bag. He swallowed audibly, his cheeks growing a little rosy and he shoved his clothes into the bag with so much force, Lucy thought he might have been in danger of ripping out the bottom.

"R-right," He mumbled.

Lucy eyed him curiously, wondering what the bag had done to him and why he was suddenly stuttering, but Natsu wasn't looking at her. Instead he had his nose buried in the pack. Probably taking inventory of what food they were low on or something.

Though she wasn't sure why he even bothered with that. He either ate it all on the first day or turned his nose up at it and went hunting instead.

Shaking her head she finished folding her clothes and got up to head to the bathroom. She tried not to take too many toiletries when they went out somewhere, but there were a few things she refused to go without. And after the last time Natsu had mocked her for taking her toothpaste and then shamelessly stolen some of it she wasn't going to let him go without any either.

"Here." She said as she came back out, blinking in surprise when she realized her pile of clothes had vanished. Had he actually packed them already?

Slightly disbelieving, she peered inside and sure enough... Natsu had packed her clothes for her. Talk about a first!

She smiled as she handed over the items, "Are we ready then?" She asked.

"Yep!" Natsu exclaimed, seemingly over whatever had made him stutter before, and leapt to his feet, shrugging the pack on with ease, "Let's go!"

He turned towards Happy and scooped him onto the bed after seeing he was having a bit of trouble climbing onto the mattress.

"Got your fish buddy?" He asked the kitten and helped him roll it into a green rucksack to help him tie around his shoulders. Happy was still young enough to need help doing that, and Natsu seemed more than patient enough with him to assist.

It was a little heartwarming to see him doing things like that for the kitten, but Lucy bit her tongue as Happy crawled onto Natsu's shoulder and they both turned to give her identical looks of impatience.

"What're you lookin' at us like that Lucy?" Happy asked with an innocent tilt of his head, "It's really creepy."

At Natsu's cackling response, all signs of affection vanished from the horizon and Lucy tugged at Happy's ears, "Quiet you."

"C'mon then, let's go meet up with Wendy and have her help you with the train and we can get going" Lucy grinned as Natsu punched the air enthusiastically and let out a small roar of excitement.

"Alright! I'm all fired up now!"

Lucy rolled her eyes as they headed out and headed back to the guild to officially take both jobs. For some reason, the trip to the guild always seemed shorter than the one back home, but Lucy chalked that up to she was always eager to get there.

So it didn't take them long to get back and find Wendy.

"Aw, you're not going to the festival?" The little dragonslayer sighed in disappointment.

"Heh, now don't get all sad and gloomy!" Natsu grinned, reaching out to rub her head a little, "We're takin' both jobs! It's two weeks to the festival so we should have plenty of time to do this other one first!"

"Really?!" Wendy gasped in delight.

"Yep!" Lucy promised as she re-joined them, "I've confirmed it with Mira. Natsu and I will take this job first and then the three of us will go to the festival!" She smiled at Wendy, "We just need you to cast a Troia spell on Natsu so we can take the train. Do you mind?"

"Of course not!" Wendy exclaimed happily and reached up to cast the spell, "There! That should get you for a little while at least."

Lucy nodded and looked at Natsu, "We should hurry then. The sooner we get going the more ground we'll cover before it wears off."

"Right. See ya in a few days Wendy!"

"Bye Natsu! Bye Lucy!" Wendy called, "I'll have everything ready when you get back!"

The pair waved as they headed out and Cana chuckled from where she was wrapped around her barrel, "Those three need to be careful or they're gonna start looking like a family."

"Aw, I think it's cute!" Mira laughed, "Who would've thought all Natsu needed was someone like Lucy in his life?"

"Sure sure," Cana grinned, her fingers tracing patterns on the wooden barrel, "Lets just hope they figure it out for themselves. It's almost as bad as Alzack and Bisca used to be."

"Now now," Mira smiled alongside Cana, wiping clean the glasses from behind the bar counter, "Are you telling me you're thinking about changing your bet?"

"Hell no!" Cana smirked viciously back at Mira, double checking over her shoulder to ensure there wasn't a pink haired dragonslayers around to eavesdrop.

"I'm just thinking about making it a little more interesting!" Cana cheered and beckoned for the rest of the guild's attention, "fifty thousand jewel on those love birds coming back together! Any takers?"

The answering cheer was heard from the street, and Natsu blinked, glancing towards the guild as they crossed the short distance to the station.

"Huh, wonder what's got them so excited," He shrugged.

"Knowing those guys... it could be anything." Lucy smirked in amusement before heading over to get their tickets. Thankfully, being in the guild had its perks and they had a queue all their own, so it only took a few moments to get what was needed.

Natsu couldn't help admiring Lucy as she did all the talking. He hated interacting with people like that. He was generally too impatient and it escalated quickly. But Lucy was practically born for it.

She smiled, sparkled and flirted and the guys behind the counter were generally falling all over themselves to please her. It always made him grin to watch, even if a twinge of jealousy curled in his stomach when he did.

Though it never lasted long as she would then turn and give him that victorious little smile that she reserved just for him. The one that told him she'd totally been playing whoever she was talking to, and had come out on top. It was a smile that always made the demonic side of him purr in admiration. Sort of a proof that Lucy did have a calculating side to her.

A fact that somehow made her kindness and genuine smiles, that much more special. It pleased him more than he would ever admit that he knew her well enough to know one side from the other.

Though it did help she never did it maliciously. It was always to get information or try and weasel a discount. He couldn't fault her for either.

"Got it?" He purred as she rejoined him with their tickets, his voice unconsciously dropping as his admiration bled through a little.

Lucy blushed a bit at the sound of it, her insides melting some at the husky tone, "Yeah. Platform three. Train's due to depart in about ten minutes."

She bit her tongue against saying anything else because the very first thought on her mind was that Natsu's voice should be illegal when he spoke like that. Seriously. It was sexy as hell, and it made want to curl up and have him read to her in that voice.

Anything would do. The phonebook really. She wasn't picky.

Of course the moment Natsu boarded the train, he was filled with childish excitement that chased away all signs of his inner thoughts the moment Troia took effect.

He practically ran from one end of the train to the other as he searched high and low for their compartment, eventually laying claim to whichever one he thought would have the best view.

He flopped back on the seat, grinning widely up at Happy as he floated up to land on pink spikes. Lucy more sedately dropped down across the way, her cheeks still warm from the sharpness in his eyes and the wickedness in his smile.

The strange, burgeoning feelings for him she had kept resurfacing at strange times. Times like this where she had trouble figuring out what to do or how to react especially since they had begun to grow in intensity.

It was easier to ignore his natural charisma and attractive smile when he was complete jerk. But over the months of knowing one another and Natsu opened up to her more and more, his devilish behavior had shifted from bloodthirsty intent to something much nicer. Something warmer.

It was the difference between an inferno and a campfire.

She tucked her legs up under her and leaned on her elbow against the window, "Ready for another adventure?"

Natsu grinned back at her and nodded

"I'm all fired up!"

* * *

 _ **OHOHOH! WE SNUCK A CHAPTER UP ON YOU! AND YOU THOUGHT YOU WOULD HAVE TO WAIT! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, MSLEAD!  
**_

 _ **Not enough time for review responses because of the fast update, but I will address a few questions.**_

 _ **1.) A Drake is a leader of a nest. It's determined by a special** something **they have. They have an extremely vast supply of magic in them. Natsu is a drake simply because he's also a demon, he has way too much power for him NOT to be a drake. Gajeel is one because... well he's Gajeel. Look at the guy. In canon he had a sword shoved through his arm. And he FLEXED IT INTO PIECES. AND THEN ATE IT.**_

 _ **They are unusually strong, even for a dragon, which makes them natural leaders. Igneel was a drake, Natsu is a drake, and Gajeel is a drake. There can be female drakes as well, it isn't specified to just one gender.**_

 _ **2.) Kytrin and I are working on a new fic right now as we speak. Parallels is totally done, so all we're doing now is updating the chapters we've been sitting on.**_

 _ **3.) Laxus will not be appearing in this fic. Him being a dragon would be sort of complicated, and fitting him into the story wasn't working. SORRY LAXUS FANS.**_

 _ **4.) Frosch and Lector are super cute, and they were ORIGINALLY in the fic, but we removed them because... :'D We forgot they were there and didn't even notice. So sorry, those furballs aren't showing up either.**_

 _ **I think that's itttt.**_

* * *

 _"Doesn't matter what it is so long as I can beat it up!"_

 _He thought about it long and hard as he tried to figure out what it could be, "I dunno what could make men disappear in the middle of the night. But whatever it is, it has to be good. Maybe food?"_

 _"Or fish!" Happy added with a flick of his tail._

 _"Those are both the same thing," Lucy tiredly replied, letting loose a quiet sigh. Her boys gave her a baffled look and she just groaned._


	33. The Hound of the Baskervilles

**_Act 3_**

 ** _Alright guys! You've been spoiled the past couple of days, but updates go back to once every two days!_**

* * *

 ** _33_**

 ** _The Hound of the Baskervilles_**

 _"That which is clearly known hath less terror than that which is but hinted at and guessed."_

 _―_ Arthur Conan Doyle **, _The Hound of the Baskervilles_**

* * *

For a mercy the troia managed to last all the way through the train ride, and the village itself was only an hour on foot after that so Lucy was happy to walk the rest of the way instead of take a carriage.

"So Lucy, what do you think could be doing this?" Happy asked as the building came into sight and the reality their job was starting hit them.

"I dunno," Lucy replied, "I'm sure it's some kind of magic though. Maybe a magic creature that lures people away?"

"What?! There are things that do that?!" Happy exclaimed in horror.

Lucy rolled her eyes at his antics, "How should I know?" She retorted, "I'm just throwing ideas out there. Natsu would be the one who could tell you."

"But how did you even think of something like that?" Happy demanded and Lucy sighed, "Look, Earth might not have magic, but that doesn't stop us from having stories about it okay? And a lot of those involve people being lured away by someone or something." She shrugged, "You wouldn't believe how many stories fit the description of men mysteriously vanishing in the night."

"Yeah?" Natsu asked curiously, "Like what?"

"Well, there's the succubus who lures them away and feeds on their energy." Their sexual energy, but she wasn't going to mention that in front of Happy, "Then you get things like the Rusalka who lure men into their pools to drown them." She shrugged, "But I doubt any of that meshes with stuff native to Earthland, so there's no telling."

"Wow... your world sounds rough Lucy." Happy murmured, and Lucy rolled her eyes again, "That kind of stuff isn't real remember?"

She looked at Natsu, "So what do you think it might be? A demoness or something?"

Natsu shrugged, a yawn pulling from the back of his throat, "Doesn't matter what it is so long as I can beat it up!"

He thought about it long and hard as he tried to figure out what it could be, "I dunno what could make men disappear in the middle of the night. But whatever it is, it has to be good. Maybe food?"

"Or fish!" Happy added with a flick of his tail.

"Those are both the same thing," Lucy tiredly replied, letting loose a quiet sigh. Her boys gave her a baffled look and she just groaned.

"I think only you two would be lured away by the smell of something cooking," Lucy huffed and walked on ahead, unable to help but be amused by their easy thoughts.

It was a simple reasoning, and Lucy wondered if Natsu was intentionally being silly about the situation so not to frighten Happy. She paused mid-stride to study him, wondering if he had thought about that where it had passed over her mind.

Happy was still very little, and capable of being easily frightened.

He was a brave kitten though for wanting to come along.

"There's no use worrying about it until we talk to the villagers right?" Lucy waited for them at the gate, waiting for Natsu to lazily stride up.

The gate surrounding the small down looked hastily put together. It didn't rise very high at all, so it was easy to miss from the road. But there was something about how it had been clumsily nailed together that put Lucy on edge.

It was something Natsu seemed to pick up too, as something in his face shifted and darkened.

They were greeted by two stone faced women at the front, their expressions hard and unwelcoming. Together they eyed Natsu with such a severe look, Lucy felt an odd sensation of cold slide down into her stomach.

"Uh, hi?" Lucy asked nervously, more than a little put off by those hard icy stares, "I'm Lucy and this is Natsu. We're here about the job?" A job that was suddenly looking a lot less fun.

She jumped a little when they turned their gazes on her, "We know why you're here." One told her harshly, "And if you know what's good for your friend you'll tell him to go back the way he came."

Lucy and Natsu both narrowed their eyes a little at that, "I'm not going back anywhere!" He growled fiercely at them, "I might not know what dumb thing is kidnapping the guys around here, but it doesn't matter! Magical or not I'll still beat it up!"

"Aye!" Happy agreed just as fiercely, though the effect was somewhat lessened on him.

"Look." Lucy spoke up, trying to play peacekeeper, "We realize this job is dangerous, but we've already accepted it, and Fairy Tail wizards don't go back on their word. And Natsu's not exactly ordinary. So why not give us a chance?"

One of the women snorted, "It doesn't matter. He's still a man, and that means he won't be able to resist it. None of them can. We have to lock our remaining men up at night and guard them. You're better off leaving."

The other one appeared to be wavering a little though, "Maybe we should give them a chance." She murmured, "They're already here, and maybe their magic will make them immune..."

"It won't do anything!" The first woman snapped harshly, but turned in a huff, "But it doesn't matter now. It's their funeral. Do whatever you want." She turned and stomped off.

"Please forgive her." The second woman murmured, bowing to them, "Her husband was one of the first victims. She's had it very hard since then. Please, come with me. I'll show you where you can stay and explain what I can."

Silence stretched out between them, Natsu exchanging a look with Lucy and shrugging.

He was confident he wouldn't be so easily tricked or lured away by certain magics. Sure, he could be sort of dim witted at times, but that was thanks to his own impulsive and hotheaded nature. Natsu wasn't an idiot that could be tricked that easily.

And sometimes his straightforward way of thinking was precisely what saved him from illusion-type magic.

"We won't dishonor our guild's name," Natsu said finally, a firmness in the set of his jaw that hadn't been there before, "We'll get your men back and stomp whatever weird thing is taking them away."

He nodded over at Lucy and grinned, letting her take the lead as he was bound to flare up in a fit of temper at some point. Lucy was more than likely the best chance to reason with these women.

They were lead into the town, the gate shuttering closed behind them. Eyes followed their trek from every direction, all of them focused on Natsu.

This time he was getting the stares not because they knew what he was or even who he was, but because they thought he was going to suffer the same fate as their men.

"So... what's been happening exactly?" Lucy asked, anxious to break the oppressive silence that hung over the place.

"We don't know exactly." The woman replied, "The men say they hear a voice in the distance. It's a woman's voice. Some say it sounds like their wives. Some say it sounds like the most beautiful voice they've ever heard. But they all say she sounds like she's in trouble, and they're overcome with a desperate urge to go after it and help."

Tears stung her eyes, "Then, if we don't stop them, they disappear into the mists. Not even locking them up always helps. The only thing that seems to calm it is if the one they love is there at all times to assure them they're alright and there."

She was crying openly by now, and Lucy put her arm around her shoulders, "That's horrible." She murmured sympathetically, and smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry though. I promise Natsu and I will get to the bottom of this for you."

"Thank you." The woman sniffled as they approached a small inn, "My husband and I own this inn. You may stay here free of charge. We have a couple of hours before sunset so I'll get some dinner for you. I'm afraid you're the only guests at the moment."

"That's fine." Lucy re-assured her hastily, and smiled, "Thank you. And let me know if you need a hand cooking. I'm not a chef or anything, but I know my way around a kitchen."

"Sorta," Natsu said cheekily, earning himself a karate chop to the top of his head. He yelped and rubbed his hands through his spikes.

That caused a small swell of laughter to break out and dispel the tense atmosphere surrounding them. The woman's tears dried and she gave them both a weak smile, one Lucy returned.

Together they moved around the inn as a meal was prepared. One Natsu completely annihilated within minutes. Lucy sighed and watched the carnage unfold, unable to do anything but shield Happy from bits of flying food.

But soon as night fell, the atmosphere once again thickened with fear, and the men were slowly herded away out of sight. Natsu perked up at the sight of them all being lead off, and was unable to help but wonder if they thought they would be safe behind four walls.

"I guess it's time for them to try and stay where they are for the night," Lucy sighed. She stood up from the table and looked fiercely at Natsu, "It's up to us to make sure they get their lives back to normal."

Natsu nodded and stood up after her, slamming his fist into an open palm, a rush of fire escaping him from the contact, "Sounds fun to me!"

"We're definitely going to get them back, and kick whoevers ass is doing this crap," He growled fiercely, his eyes darkening in anger, "It ain't right for them to be so scared."

Lucy took Happy into her arms and stood up, "Alright then, well we might as well start looking around. I'm sure if we head to the tree line where most of the reports of the missing men have happened, something is bound to shake loose."

Natsu nodded and they headed out into the evening, tense and ready for whatever might happen.

Sure enough, once the last rays of sunlight were gone, a thick fog began rolling in from the depths of the forest itself, "Creepy!" Lucy shivered as it overcame them and spread through the town itself.

"Yeah." Natsu growled in agreement, "Keep your guard up." He glanced around warily, making sure to stay close to Lucy so they didn't get separated. He didn't like this fog. It wasn't natural, and it made him want to bare his fangs and snarl.

"Right." Lucy moved a bit closer to him, "Can you hear or smell anything?" She asked. It was no use trying to see through it. Even with Natsu burning it away they wouldn't have the greatest visibility.

"Nu uh. Nothing. I don't like it though."

"Yeah, me neither. Let me summon Pyxis. He'll at least be able to keep us going in the right direction."

"Good idea."

Normally, Natsu was more inclined to make fun of the weird bird compass than pay attention to it, but in this case the little guy would be useful as long as they didn't lose him in the fog.

Lucy pulled out the little silver key, one of four their guildmates had found for her in the early days, and slashed it through the air, "Okay Pyxis, we need you to help us find a bunch of people that were kidnapped." She told it once she'd summoned it, "We think they're somewhere to the northwest."

Pyxis peeped enthusiastically at her and his compass spun around for a moment before settling.

"Alright. That way it is." Lucy nodded and glanced at Natsu, who was looking a little paler than she thought he should, "You alright?" She asked in concern, "Do you hear something?"

He shook his head, his fingers fidgeting in his scarf. It was true, he didn't feel so great. There was nothing physically wrong with him, but there was just a small sense of unease he couldn't shake.

He grinned at her and shook his head, "I'm fine. The only thing I hear is the crickets." He followed the weird bird spirit and Lucy.

"Keep a hold on Happy, the fog is getting super thick," Natsu reached out and took her hand so he didn't lose sight of Lucy. His eyes were very sharp, but he didn't want to risk it. That, and he stood a better chance of guiding her around obstacles if the fog got too thick.

"Right," Lucy replied, her grip in his hand tightening.

Natsu grinned at her, but stopped a moment later when a sudden sound made him freeze, "Wait-" He warned.

The sound rolled in from the fog, heavy on the tops of the trees surrounding them. What was worse, it seemed to flow from every direction, as if it came from the mist itself.

Natsu blinked and shook his head, his other hand rising to clear his mind. Something fuzzy seemed to be encroaching on his senses, dulling them from their usual sharpness.

A high pitched whining.

"Natsu, what's wrong?" Happy asked, looking at the dragon worriedly. Natsu shook his head and held up a hand, his eyes searching through the haze.

"It's a high pitched noise. It's loud," Natsu's brow furrowed and he glanced at the two of them, "You can't hear it?"

At the twin looks of apprehension on their face and their shaking heads, Natsu knew quite solidly they had no idea what he was talking about.

"I think we're getting close," Natsu said after a moment, relieved he wasn't hearing any strange women crying out for him.

Lucy looked relieved as well, "Well it seems that whatever is affecting the villagers here doesn't have the same affect on you. It might be because your physiology is different."

"Huh, guess whatever is doing this isn't used to working on guys that are something other than human," Natsu eyed Happy, "Explains why you can't hear it at all, huh?"

"Aye." Happy murmured tremulously. The little kitten was starting to get really scared now, and burrowed closer to Lucy. He would've preferred Natsu, but he knew he would get in the way if Natsu had to fight. Something he'd learned early on, and had resolved to find a way to fix. He would help Natsu fight one day!

However, that day was not today, and he was very scared.

"Is there any way for you to follow it?" Lucy asked hopefully. Pyxis was good, but Natsu's tracking ability would be better. He was like a bloodhound once he got a sound or scent to follow.

Unfortunately Natsu just shook his head, "Naw, it sounds like it's coming from all around. I wouldn't even begin to know where to look."

Lucy slumped a little at that, "Well it was worth a try. Let's keep following Pyxis. With luck you'll be able to figure it out the closer we get."

Natsu nodded and they continued through the mist, but it didn't take long before Natsu noticed the sound was starting to sound less plain whining and more frustrated whining. He smirked a bit at the thought that they were annoying it without even seeing it.

His smirk quickly turned into horror though as another sound became audible. A rumbling one that was all too natural and familiar. And getting louder. Loud enough for Lucy and Happy to look around.

"What in the world-?" Lucy asked only to yelp as Natsu snagged her around the waist and threw her over his shoulder without regard to anything and began to sprint as fast as he could move.

"Natsu what are you doing?!"

"Savin' your butts!" Natsu huffed as he ran, "That's either a rockslide or a mudslide. I'm not sure which, and I'm not sticking around to find out!"

He chanced a look behind him, his eyes nearly bugging out of his head as he saw a mudslide bearing down on them. Lucy was shouting something in his ear and fumbling for her keys. Natsu wasn't sure how successful she would be, or who she thought she could summon to help them, but it couldn't have been easy with her bouncing around on his shoulder.

Or with a frightened cat digging his claws into her arm.

Unfortunately he realized they were quickly running out of ground. A fast moving river separated them from freedom. Lucy would surely break her neck on the rocks in the rapids. Without being able to see in the dark it was an invitation to trouble.

He twisted around onto his heel, taking in a deep breath of air. They had to make a stand where they were. He just hoped it would be enough. Lucy's hand gripped onto the back of his shirt tightly at his sudden movement. Her gasp breathed against his neck thanks to her twisting position to see what he was doing, and he used her warmth to ground himself in the moment.

He let out a roaring bellow of flame, the spiral of light slamming into the heavy mudslide and baking it into something hard and immobile. A clay wall stood before them, smoking and super-heated by Natsu's flames.

He panted and grinned after waiting a moment to see if everything was clear.

"Ha, stupid mudslide," Natsu crowed and lightly dropped Lucy to the ground.

"Way to go Natsu," Lucy said in relief, groaning a bit at the suddenness of being back on her feet.

"What caused it though?" Happy questioned, staring at the giant clay wall standing in front of them like a frozen wave. Natsu was already approaching it, his fist knocking on the surface.

"I dunno, a mudslide like this shouldn't have been possible, but here we are," He shrugged, "I didn't think this was the right kind of area for stuff like this but-"

Before he could explore whatever thought he had, a low rumble shook the earth anew, and a large crack split in the hardened wall Natsu had created. His eyes went wide in a split second, his head turning towards Lucy and mouth open to shout out a warning.

And the wall abruptly shattered, throwing all three into the river behind them.

* * *

 _ **Review Responses will begin again starting next chapter! Thank you to everyone and your patience! It's been a fun couple of days, but I need an extra one to get the responses out to you all! Thank you again for all the birthday wishes! We really appreciate it! :D We also received a wonderful gift of fanart for my birthday from the-heart-of-a-writer on tumblr! You can find it here! Just replace the X's with periods!** _

_**the-heart-of-a-writerXtumblrXcom/post/133450906609/natsu-with-happys-egg-honestly-i-couldnt-get**_

* * *

 _ **And here is your sneak peek for blowing my mind again!**_

* * *

 _"Natsu!" She called out into the dark forest, "Natsu where are you!"_

 _Predictably, there was no response to her calls._

 _At least, not in the form of Natsu responding to her._

 _What she heard instead was a rustling sound that sent shivers of fear up her spine as she turned to peer into the inky darkness, "Who's there?" She demanded, her hand flying to Virgo's key, "I warn you, I'm not helpless!"_


	34. Dracula

**_Act 3_**

* * *

 ** _34_**

 ** _Dracula_**

 _"There are darknesses in life and there are lights, and you are one of the lights, the light of all lights."_

 _―_ Bram Stoker ** _, Dracula_**

* * *

And the wall abruptly shattered, throwing all three into the river behind them.

"Ah! Natsu!" Lucy cried as she struggled to get to the surface only to cry out in pain as she hit a rock she couldn't see. This was bad. This was very bad. At this rate she would be tenderized or worse!

"Lucy!" Happy cried, having felt the impact as well, and knew by the way she'd tightened her grip that she was trying to take the blows for him, "We gotta get out of here!"

He could hear Natsu shouting ahead of them, but between the fog and the dark not even he could see the dragon clearly enough to do any good. And with Lucy snagging on so many rocks and things it was only a matter of time before she got seriously hurt or pulled completely under again.

Happy's heart pounded with fear, but it was clear enough that the only way to get out of this was if he did something. But what could he do? He was too small and weak to grab hold of something and keep them there and Natsu was too far away. Maybe he could fly them out?

It was worth a try.

He scrambled out of her arms, ignoring Lucy's alarmed shouts, and crawled up to her shoulders, "Sorry!" He called as he accidentally sank his claws deeply into her shoulder to keep from getting swept away.

"Happy! What are you doing?" Lucy cried, frightened the kitten would get hurt, but up ahead Natsu, who had been trying futilely to swim against the current to get to them, was able to see Happy's movements and began cheering him on.

"That's it Happy! Get Lucy to shore! I'll be fine!"

"Wha-?" Lucy started only to eep as Happy wrapped his little paws around her, sank his claws into her clothes, and lifted her out of the water.

He huffed and puffed, tiny wings flapping like a hummingbird to fight against gravity. But the exceed was stubborn and managed to drag her to the side enough for Lucy to catch her arms on the embankment and pull herself out. She panted hard to catch her breath, soaked to the bone and freezing.

"Thanks Happy," Lucy croaked. It was impossible to determine how much water she swallowed by the surprise dip in the water.

"You're welcome," The kitten wheezed, just a shivering clump of blue fur. He looked absolutely exhausted having tried to hold up Lucy alone, "You're really heavy. Heavier than Natsu!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lucy growled, snagging the cat by his little rucksack and dropping him onto her lap, "Speaking of which, where's Natsu?"

Lucy leaned her soaking head over the waterside, her eyes scanning around to try and catch sight of him in the water. But the current had been strong and had swept him away.

"Alright Happy, I'll look for Natsu here," She looked at the cat, "You go back to the village, he might meet us back there, okay?"

Happy did not look completely convinced and he looked up at Lucy with big, black eyes, "What about you Lucy? We shouldn't split up anymore, what if the monster gets you when you're out here alone?"

Feeling warm at the feline's concern, Lucy shook her head and soothed her fingers through his wet fur, "I have my spirits with me Happy. I won't be alone."

He was only indecisive for another pause before he breathed out and nodded.

"Aye! Come back soon with Natsu! Ok?" He saluted and opened his tiny wings.

Lucy watched the Exceed fly off, swallowing hard as she realized she was now alone by herself in the woods at night.

Perhaps It wasn't the best moves, but Happy was still too young to be doing rough adventures like this, and now she and Natsu had been separated. It was too dangerous to keep him here.

Slowly she pulled herself upright and brushed herself off, trying to knock aside thick slabs of mud from her shins and knees. It clung stubbornly to her skin, wanting to ingrain itself into her.

All she wanted was to take a hot shower.

Preferably two.

"Natsu!" She called out into the dark forest, "Natsu where are you!"

Predictably, there was no response to her calls.

At least, not in the form of Natsu responding to her.

What she heard instead was a rustling sound that sent shivers of fear up her spine as she turned to peer into the inky darkness, "Who's there?" She demanded, her hand flying to Virgo's key, "I warn you, I'm not helpless!"

"Piri, piri! Don't shoot! Piri!" A pair of familiar voices called and Lucy's jaw dropped as tiny blue twins pushed their way through the tree branches to join her

"Gemini?!" She exclaimed, completely flabbergasted, "What...what are you doing here?"

"We were looking for you!" One exclaimed while the other nodded, "Yeah! Our contract with Angel broke when you beat her, and we decided we wanted to make a new one with you!"

"But we couldn't find you at first." The first twin picked up, "Leo told us you were at Fairy Tail, but we didn't know how to get there!"

"You... followed me all this way?" Lucy asked, completely stunned.

Their keys couldn't be taken to the celestial realm except under very special circumstances and only if a contract was already in place. That meant they would've had to have opened their gate, carried their key as far as they could before needing to go back, and repeated it every step of the way until they'd found her. It was an amazing amount of dedication, and Lucy was awed that they wanted to contract with her so badly they would do it.

"Sure we did!" They exclaimed, "You're really awesome Lucy!" One, the brother she thought, elaborated, "You don't view us as things or slaves. It's really rare to see that!"

"And we weren't the only ones who decided to take the chance to leave Angel!" His sister announced proudly and pulled back a branch so two more figures could join them.

"Aries? Scorpio?" Lucy gawked, certain she could be knocked over with a feather by this point.

"We are totally on board with making contracts with you Miss Lucy," Scorpio grinned crookedly, "I know it seems real sudden, but we were all touched by the dedication you showed Virgo and Leo!"

Aries shifted, smiling at her as well, "A-Ah, I-if you don't think I would be a b-burden, I would also like to be one of your spirits, sorry..."

Lucy's heart turned practically into goo at the shuffling ram and her friends. She twisted her fingers together and tucked her hands through her soaked hair.

"Thank you everyone," She murmured earnestly, "I would love to make contracts with all of you!"

"But, do you think we can do it later on?" She asked them apologetically. Lucy hated to put them off any longer than she already had, no matter how inadvertently, but she couldn't help it.

"I lost my partner, Natsu, and we're in the middle of a job right now," She hurried to explain.

"What kinda job?" Scorpio asked, his eyes dropping down to the key ring at Lucy's side. She noticed he seemed to be eyeing one of her keys with more of a sense of focus than the other spirits.

"Men are being lured away from their homes in the middle of the night," Lucy hurried to explain, "They say they hear the cries of their wives or some other beautiful maiden begging for help and are compelled to leave."

The Gemini twins both floated before Lucy and tilted their heads in unison over this news.

"So it's a copy cat?" They asked at the same time.

Lucy nodded, realizing those two spirits might know something about what was terrorizing the towns thanks to their unique powers. Them, or perhaps she should consider calling on Grandfather Crux.

"Gemini please, do you know of any kind of creature that matches that description?" She demanded.

They let out a thoughtful hum as they seemed to consider her question and nodded, "Yes!"

The second one settled before Lucy, its small form barely visible in the dark woods, "It sounds like a specter of an Enchantress. Perhaps a mermaid that is long since passed away."

The first twin seemed to eye Scorpio, "Mermaids have a tendency of being a little... forceful in their emotions. Especially with their loved ones."

The man looked oblivious.

Lucy for her part, was completely confused by the twins shifty behavior in regards to Scorpio.

That aside, she remembered her own stories about tales and creatures from her world. Sirens who lured sailors to their death by the sound of their voice alone. Perhaps some of the creatures she read about in her world were also in existence here.

"How do you defeat someone like that?" Lucy asked desperately. She had the sinking sensation in her stomach that if she didn't find Natsu soon, the creature would instead.

Gemini looked at one and reached out to take one another's hands, "Isn't it obvious?"

"Only they can defeat themselves!"

"Uhm," Aries stuttered in confusion. Lucy certainly felt as if she could relate to that.

The twins didn't seem to make any sense, but they understood one another far too well.

"I think the little twins mean you gotta break out the cool moves and have a mermaid fight a mermaid," Scorpio translated. His duster tail twitched, "Totally wicked!"

Lucy blinked a little as comprehension suddenly dawned and she looked down at her keys, "You mean Aquarius?" She gasped holding up the key with mingled hope and dread, "Do you think she could find her too?"

"Maybe?" The twins replied, "We might be out of range since we don't know where the other mermaid is hiding." They smiled happily, "But don't worry! We can help you find that!"

"Really?" Lucy gasped excitedly, pleased she wouldn't have to summon her very temperamental spirit just yet.

"Sure!" One exclaimed, "Her lair is sure to be near water, so if we split up and check up and down we're sure to stumble across it!" They drifted over to her side, "We'll go with you downstream while Scorpio and Aries go up. As long as you're holding our keys then we can signal each other."

"Right on!" Scorpio enthused, "If Aries and I find it we'll backtrack to our keys, which will be with you and let you know! And if you find it you can summon one of us! That'll signal the other!"

Lucy stared at them in delight, "You guys are the best!" She exclaimed, suddenly feeling much better about this now that there was a workable plan in place, "Alright, let's do this!"

She collected their keys and fastened them securely to her keychain, "You guys be careful alright?" She told Aries and Scorpio, "Especially you Scorpio. This thing doesn't seem to work on non-humans, but we can't be too careful."

"Don't worry about a thing Miss Lucy!" Scorpio grinned, "We got this one in the bag!"

Lucy grinned back at him as they split up and began moving downstream. The fog, for whatever reason, seemed to be lifting a little so she was having an easier time seeing. She just hoped that didn't mean this thing had Natsu or any of the villagers.

"I hope we find this spirit mermaid soon." She told Gemini, "I'm worried about Natsu."

"Aw, don't worry about him!" They replied, "He's a dragon! He won't fall for any of her cheap tricks. The only way he could would be if he was in love, and we know that's not the case!"

Lucy had to hide a jolt to her heart over hearing those words spoken aloud, but smiled at them anyway, "Yeah you're right. Let's go!"

Of course Natsu wasn't in love. It was a stupid thought and she'd been telling herself that for weeks. Gemini had just said what she already knew out loud. That was all.

That didn't stop her heart from aching though. Or praying to whatever deity was listening that he was alright.

-::-

Meanwhile, Natsu coughed up a lungful of water, shaking out his baggy pants and staring up at the sky. He had swept quite the distance away from Lucy without so much as a tug at their bond.

He didn't know what that meant. How he was allowed so much space from her?

Natsu didn't like it.

He set himself aflame, drying himself off from the river in seconds and lifting his nose to the air. The fog was especially thick at the base of the tree he was crouched against, and he was having trouble picking up Lucy's scent next to the river.

But if he stuck by the river bed and headed back the way he came though, he was bound to find Lucy again.

So that was the plan he had. Confident she was okay thanks to Happy's quick thinking, he began to move up the river. It was a good thing Lucy hadn't thought to summon Aquarius in the river, after all the temperamental mermaid might have done more damage to Lucy in the dark than good. Still, he had to hurry.

Alone in the woods with some weird monster thing? Natsu wasn't in favor of those chances.

That, and the heaviness of the fog seemed to be clinging to him stubbornly now, filling his lungs with its filmy darkness and making it hard to see.

"Natsu!"

His head jolted up, and Natsu's heart jumped in his chest, a smile spreading across his face at that familiar voice shouting. He continued to head up the river, the fog slowly receding backwards as if peeling from his body like strips of confetti.

"Natsu where are you!" Lucy's voice came from just up ahead, and Natsu's pace quickened.

"Lucy!" He called out, hearing her gasping response.

Overjoyed, he broke through the next few trees into a clearing finally devoid of the ever-present mist. Lucy was edging along the riverbank, looking frustrated, soggy, and completely out of her depth as she fumbled in the dark.

However she caught one look at him and her face brightened with relief.

"Natsu! Thank goodness you're alright!" She exclaimed and rushed towards him. Her arms were flung around his waist and her head dipped into his chest.

"What, you thought a little bit of water could actually hurt me? Please, do I look like that ice prick?" Natsu grinned at her, his eyes scanning around her body to make sure she was okay. She smelled fine, somehow having managed to escape injury. Aside from a few bruises at least, she looked like she was safe.

"Well sorry," She rolled her eyes, "You can't blame me for being worried, we were really freaked out there when you went sailing off by yourself!"

He had the grace to at least look apologetic about that, and lightly dropped his hands on her shoulders. It was then Natsu caught sight of a few things that threw him for a loop. Three new keys rested on her loop, while Happy was nowhere to be seen.

"Huh, where'd you get _those_?" Natsu asked immediately, his penchant for noticing everything about his partner flaring up immediately. He glanced around, worried, "And where did Happy go?"

Lucy smiled back at him, "Don't worry. I sent Happy back to the village in case you showed up there. He's fine. As for these..." She tapped the keys with a grin, "It seems Gemini, Aries, and Scorpio had their contracts break when I beat Angel, but we left too soon for them to let us know that. So they've actually been trying to find me ever since."

Natsu's eyes widened in shock at that, "Seriously? They've been following you since then?"

She nodded, "Yeah. They said they were impressed with my dedication to Virgo and Leo, so they wanted to join me."

"Wow Lucy! That's awesome! At this rate you'll have the whole Zodiac!" Natsu grinned broadly at her, relaxing now that he knew Happy was safe, and Lucy was even more armed than she'd been before.

He knew she treasured her keys, but as far as he was concerned the more variety she had to work with the better. It gave her more options in battle.

He watched happily as she smiled back and snuggled closer to him. He realized belatedly that she was wet and shivering, and automatically wrapped his arms around her, gently increasing his temperature to warm her up and help her dry off.

"Thanks Natsu." She murmured and he grinned down at her, opening his mouth to reply, when he was suddenly struck by just how close she was.

All at once it hit him. How she felt in his arms. The way she was pressed against him so deliciously. It sent a shiver of heat that had nothing to do with his fire coursing through him. She was...beautiful.

Beautiful and extraordinary.

He knew he was not. That he shouldn't be feeling these things around her. Simply basking in her light was amazing. But he couldn't help feeling what he did.

If he was honest with himself, it had been going on for a while, but thanks to Gray he hadn't been able to get it out of his head and now she was right there and fit against him like a perfect puzzle piece and...and...

And greedy bastard that he was... he wanted more.

His gaze dropped to her lips, and he was overwhelmed by the urge to find out what they tasted like. He was sure they were as soft as he looked, and bet they tasted like the strawberries she smelled like.

He startled when he felt her dainty hand reach up and caress his cheek, gently guiding him closer, and the soft, hungry, growl he'd been keeping at bay erupted.

"Lucy…?" He purred, his entire being focusing on her, and he rested his forehead against hers, breathing in her scent. Even with all the mud and river water she smelled wonderful and heat scorched through his veins again to rest somewhere a bit further south than his belly.

It was embarrassing, but he didn't care about that right now. Right now his senses were filled with her and all he could think about was tasting her. Just this once. Never again if she didn't want it.

He glanced into her dark eyes and groaned when her tongue flicked out to wet her lips.

A moment later he had her pulled tightly against him as his lips sought out hers in a fiery, desperate, kiss. Eager to convey everything he knew he would never be able to properly say.

Her cool hands brushed over his cheeks and buried themselves into his hair. With a tug, she had him sinking against her, eagerly memorizing how she felt in his arms.

"Natsu," She breathed against his mouth, and the heat in his stomach erupted into a wrenching blaze. Her mouth, soft like a flower and just as sweet found his. It was as fierce as his own, but...

Her hand traveled down his chest, sliding around his waist to grip at his back under his shirt.

Suddenly something didn't seem right.

"Natsu please," Lucy pleaded, such a wanton sound, it was like the fire jolted in his veins again. However he couldn't shake the thought that something was wrong.

But how could it be?

Lucy was in his arms, and everything was right.

As he held her though, more and more, that sense of discomfort seemed to radiate outward. Natsu backed away, his eyes dropping down towards Lucy's large, brown ones.

It struck him then in that moment, what it was that threw him off, and it doused his fervor like a flame to water.

She was touching him like a stranger.

Lucy wasn't touching him like she knew him. Only that she _wanted_ him. Which perhaps wouldn't have been a problem for most people, but Natsu was not like that. The deep friendship they had managed to find in one another, the companionship- all of that was missing.

This was just a copy.

A shallow copy of what he wanted.

Natsu yanked back from her, as the reality of their job sank in fresh, his body going hot and cold in turns.

The creature.

The one that lured men away. How had it copied Lucy so closely? How come it took so long to affect him?

His eyes sharpened on the fog around them, ever present - ever seeing. His lungs squeezed in shock as he realized it served as the creature's eyes. Earlier Natsu had been with Lucy - the real one...

Too late, Natsu realized how it was done. This creature mimicked those they loved and Lucy-

"You aren't her," Natsu snarled at her, raw fury coloring his expression and voice at the sight of the beast wearing his partner's face, "You aren't Lucy!"

She looked surprised, as if he had snatched words from her mouth and stunned her with them.

But then a slow smile spread over her face, one which transformed Lucy's beautiful face into something much more sinister. It was a smirk that had no right deforming her in such a way. Natsu's stomach flopped uncomfortably and a hot surge of desperation sank into him, chilling its way through his blood. Was the real Lucy okay? And Happy, had he really gone back to the village?

"You're the first man who's been able to see through my disguise. A pity, you've got plenty of spark," The look alike smirked at him, not looking opposed to him, or the way fire was beginning to ignite over his fists and shoulders, "Congratulations - not that it will do you any good."

"You're already too deep into my waters," She purred at Natsu. With a finger, she pointed down.

Sure enough, the mist, which had returned the moment Natsu realized what was happening, rolled back just enough for him to see blackened waters wrapping around his waist. They sucked him down another inch. They swept around him while he was caught under her spell, trapping him slowly in its embrace.

"There's no hope for you - even if you could break free, I doubt you could hurt me while I still wore this face," She laughed cruelly at him, making Natsu feel ill at the thought he had been so thoroughly tricked.

The sight of this water witch using Lucy.

Using his feelings for her..

"You _bitch_!" He roared, throwing his fist forward and pushing forward with all of his strength. He moved a foot forward, fire pouring from his back to shove him through the water to get his hands around her slim little throat. Despite her claims, the witch clearly did not know who she was dealing with.

Dragon and demon. Water was not about to stop him as Natsu cut through the water, his flames pushing him forward with murderous intent.

The woman looked startled at his sudden lunge, but abruptly her eyes filled with tears, her expression falling into something resembling shock and betrayal. It transformed the face she wore into one he recognized.

"N-Natsu wait!" She gasped, shielding herself from his strike.

Staggering, Natsu was unable to follow through with his swing, Lucy's large eyes suffocating his flames in an instant.

 _No, he couldn't hurt her_.

In the moment of his hesitation, the woman struck back hard. A torrent of water slammed into him from behind her, crushing Natsu back against the river wall, and then dragging him down underneath the rapids.

Air burst from his lungs, and Natsu disappeared beneath the black water, leaving the spirit behind with her vengeful thoughts.

She dropped a hand to her chest and gasped in relief, "Dragons sure are troublesome. That one was close..."

* * *

 _ **Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I did your responses through PM to avoid padding the bottom of the chapter! Also, I hope you all liked what happened here. Hohohohoho...**_

 _ **Guest review responses! - . .word** (The sneak peeks are special gifts for when we hit over a certain number of reviews. Kytrin and I would never hold a chapter hostage for reviews, but we do the sneaks as encouragement :) ) - **yucie** (Don't worry, you'll be spoiled soon again I'm sure! - **Avengerika** (Yeah the whole chapter is super intense. And you're right, Fairy Tail always makes through. It's just fun to see how they do it) - **Animallover** (Oh he totally got lucky with the troia. :'D You were pretty close with the Siren. We didn't want to specifically make one. And haha that's a super good theory!) - **Guest** (Oh man! Sorry to disappoint you! Hahaha there are 65 chapters of this fic. And the whole thing is over. We update once every two days, so you don't have to wait long!) **\- Guest** (will do!) - **Little Red** (Lots of people were hoping for a sccubus. Others a siren. Hope we hit a good middle ground here. ) **\- Guest** (Absolutely! Hope you enjoyed it!)_


	35. The Little Mermaid

**_Act 3_**

 ** _HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL OUR GOBBLE-GOBBLE AMERICANS_**

* * *

 ** _35_**

 ** _The Little Mermaid_**

 _"She laughed and danced with the thought of death in her heart."_

― Hans Christian Andersen ** _, The Little Mermaid_**

* * *

"Man, I'm starting to think we'll never find this thing's lair or whatever." Lucy groaned as she stumbled over another root.

"Aw, don't say that Miss Lucy!" Gemini chirped encouragingly, "We haven't been going that long. We'll find Natsu!"

Lucy gave the little spirits a tired smile, "Yeah, I know. It's just after swimming in a river full or rapids I'm not exactly at my best for a hike in the dark."

"Maybe not, but I don't think you have to worry about it much more. Look!"

Lucy's eyes widened as she spotted the torn up spot on the river, and rushed towards it with previously unknown reserves of energy, "Wow... whatever caused this did a lot of damage." She murmured, crouching down to study the destroyed plants and dirt.

Her feet sank into ankle deep mud, a clear sign of water seepage having been there at some point. Whether it was from the river or not was up in the air, but the entire area looked like it had been ripped to shreds.

It was too bad she couldn't read tracks or understand this kind of thing. That was more Natsu's territory so she had no idea if this was where her friend had come to shore or if it was where he'd met the mermaid spirit. She glanced at Gemini, "Can you see any clues that might help?" She asked hopefully.

Unfortunately, the twins shook their heads, "Sorry. We don't know anything about tracking." They replied apologetically.

"Well, it was worth a shot." Lucy sighed and stood up, "Still, it's the best clue we have that Natsu was here, and since we haven't seen him yet my guess is he's further downstream. And since the fog here and behind us has cleared I'd guess that's where our enchantress friend is too!"

Gemini glanced at each other and nodded before morphing into a duplicate of Lucy, "You go on ahead." They said, "We'll summon Scorpio to signal Aries and the three of us will catch up. Her lair is probably a water cave or something where the water is still. Summon Aquarius as soon as you find it." The Lucy look-a-like grinned, "We'll be right behind you! Promise!"

Lucy grinned back, "Thanks guys. You're the best!"

She forged ahead, feeling far more energetic now than she had with an end in sight, and prayed for Natsu to hang on if the witch already had him in her clutches.

Of course finding a water cave in the middle of a forest was a lot harder than it sounded. Lucy pushed aside hard branches and the like as she fought blindly through the dark.

It was by sheer luck when her foot sank into some swampy earth that she realized she'd somehow stumbled into the right direction.

She was getting a little frustrated moving as she was, the trees cast heavy, blanketing shadows that blocked out even the thinnest sliver of the moon. Natsu would have no problem navigating through the woods, and perhaps even Happy would be fine, but Lucy was still struggling with it.

Her breath caught as she moved a little further along the embankment and finally found the cave Gemini spoke of. She moved with a profound sense of relief, slugging her way through the ankle deep mud and towards the dimly glowing entrance.

It might as well have been fluorescent in the night, but it gave off such an eerie wave of magical energy, Lucy felt her hair stand on end.

Faint greens and blue almost replicated the patterns of the ocean surface on a clear day. They shimmered and moved, reflected across the cave walls and casting a shimmer she could used as a guide.. Lucy poked her head in, swallowing audibly.

It only took a moment of hesitation, wondering if Natsu was inside this cave already. Could she do this by herself?

Shaking her head, she dismissed the thoughts and swallowed tightly.

If Natsu had already come across the spirit and had gotten hurt, Lucy wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she simply cowered by the entrance with her fingers crossed. If he was still outside, Lucy had faith he would catch up soon. Their bond would see to that.

Summoning her bravery, she stepped inside the cave, moving deeper and deeper inside it.

Surprisingly the light grew stronger the further in she travelled, and Lucy found herself awed by how large the cave system was inside.

A hand on her keyring, and the other reaching for her whip, Lucy squeezed through narrow caves until suddenly the tunnel widened out into a large chamber. It was practically the size of a mountain, capable of housing a hundred villages within.

How had they not seen something like this from the woods?

The traitorous little voice in her head that loved to speak of all things sci-fi and nerdy, couldn't help but giggle 'It's bigger on the inside.'

The thought over how she missed certain television shows cut off as she was treated to the sight of hundreds of men submerged halfway in a black fluid. Many of them looked to be dissolving within the strange water, while others were in better shape.

Among those was a familiar figure, sprawled out on his back, eyes closed as the black water crawled over his body.

"Natsu!" Lucy gasped in horror, forgetting herself for a moment to rush towards him. She dropped to his side, her hand dipping into thick, pink hair. Her trembling fingers tugged past the wet scarf around his neck to feel for a pulse.

She almost sagged into the waters next to him when she felt one beating strong under her hands. His expression seemed tense, eyes flickering under his eyelids as if searching and he was unusually warm, even by his standards.

"Just hang on Natsu," Lucy assured him, "I'll get you out of this. I promise."

Before she could so much as twist her arms under his heavy body though, the waters rippled in warning. Slowly, towers began to rise from the underwater lake, blooming upwards in steady geysers.

"Well... what have we here?" A female voice laughed menacingly from seemingly everywhere at once, "The little female wizard from before? My, my, I _am_ impressed! You're the first woman to actually find my little hideaway!"

The mermaid appeared out of the thickening fog, looking radiantly beautiful, and terrifying in a way that was giving Lucy flashbacks of Aquarius' worst moods. For a spirit she sure looked solid and Lucy was suddenly, painfully, aware that she was nearly surrounded by her element.

This was not good. This was extremely not good.

She managed to keep that to herself however as she narrowed her eyes, "Let Natsu and the other men go!" She growled, "These people have done nothing wrong and you're terrorizing them!"

The mermaid just laughed.

"Terrorizing? Ah, but you're wrong! These men belong to me! They came of their own free will when I called, and gave themselves to me! Including your Natsu. Though I admit he did put up quite a fight at first."

Lucy felt a surge of satisfaction course through her at that. So Natsu had put up a fight huh? That was both good to hear and not surprising. It was just too bad that this bitch had beaten him in the end. That was alright though. Because she was there and she was not going to let this mermaid have her way.

"I don't care what you call it lady!" She snapped, pulling Aquarius' key out and unhooking her whip, "You're not getting away with this, and I _will_ be taking them back!"

"Oh really?" The mermaid taunted, a wall of water rising up behind Lucy, "And just what are you going to do about it? Summon your precious Aquarius? My fog lets me see all! I knew your plans from the beginning!" She smirked as the wall crashed into Lucy, "Let's see how well you can summon her from the bottom of the river!"

Lucy didn't even have the time to scream as the water engulfed her in an angry torrent. She disappeared below the surface in a second, as easily as a ragdoll being tossed into the wind.

The mermaid smirked as her waters calmed, leaving her alone with her precious treasures. She moved over to where Natsu, still unconscious, rested.

His brow furrowed but he didn't rise, almost as if he were instinctively sensing what happened to his companion. Silly dragon. She touched a hand to his jaw and tilted his head to the side. His fingers twitched, a low growl rumbling from his throat. Natsu's lips parted, ash trickling from the corner of his mouth.

" _Lu…c"_

"What a pity," She tsk'd at him and slid damp fingers through his pink hair, "To waste his heart on a weakling like that. Still, he's such a curious mixture of magic. He'll be more than enough to sustain my presence here for another few centuries."

"Just like all men, he has a soft heart," She moved her hand from his hair down to his chest, her fingers hooking in his shirt and tearing the fabric away. Her nails had turned razor sharp, leaving red lines on the dragon's chest from where her hand had been.

"And just like all men, it'll belong to me," Her voice purred, slowly beginning to sink fingers into his skin. He was a tasty looking morsel. All creatures knew about the ferocity of dragons. In their mortal forms they felt deeply, and with everything in their soul. He would be a particularly delectable meal.

Before she could sink her fingers through the muscle of Natsu's chest and rip open his innards, her waters swirled behind her. Once, twice-

And then a wall of water erupted behind her; she gasped, whipping around to see what had dared to control her waters.

Floating before her was a waterlogged looking Lucy, kneeling side by side with the mermaid spirit Aquarius.

"You!" She gasped, "How did you survive my torrent?"

Lucy coughed a bit wetly, but braced herself on her knees and smirked.

" _Please_ , Aquarius was my first spirit! You think your little temper tantrums are any match for her power?"

Or her rage?

Not that Lucy would say that in front of the spirit. No, she valued her life too much.

In fact, Aquarius already looked furious, lifting her urn above her head and a deadly flame burning in her eyes.

 _ **"YOU HUSSY!"**_ She roared.

Lucy's smirk widened, thoroughly enjoying watching someone _else_ be on the receiving end of that rage for a change, and edged away to give her spirit room to work. And hopefully herself something to grab onto when the inevitable tidal wave hit her too.

 _"What?!"_ The mermaid exclaimed, paling a little in the face of Aquarius' fury, "But that's impossible! She should never have been able to summon you from underwater!"

"Heh." Lucy laughed, coughing up a little water in the process, "Shows what you know." She grinned wickedly at the spirit, not bothering to elaborate that that wave hadn't _kept_ her below water and whispering the incantation worked just as well as saying it normally.

Let her think she could do it silently or something.

 _ **"Enough talk!"**_ Aquarius snarled, her fury not abated in the slightest by the aside, _**"I'm going to do to you what I should've done from the start!"**_

She waved her urn and Lucy braced herself as the expected flood smashed into the other mermaid, Natsu, and all the other men. Though, much to her surprise, it didn't go after her as well. At least not yet. Instead Aquarius seemed intent on turning it into some kind of version of a typhoon. One she was extremely glad to be on the outside of if Aquarius' smirk was any indication.

 _ **"You think you can get away with stealing other people's men?!"**_ The zodiac spirit demanded over the sounds of rushing water and the other mermaid's screams of terror, _**"I'll show you! You'll never touch another man again!"**_

Lucy stared at the absolute pummeling Aquarius was beginning to lay on the other mermaid, and she realized at the moment the true, frightening, power of the zodiacs. They were the leaders among their kind.

This mermaid really didn't stand a chance.

Spirit or not, Lucy had a feeling this would not end up well for the other.

Shielding her had, Lucy ran through the spray over to the dark water. Hopefully that would cause Aquarius to narrow the field of her attack on just their enemy, but Lucy wasn't holding her breath.

She boldly stuck her arms in the black water, almost ripping her hands away as she felt a horrible stinging run along her skin. Whatever they were laying in, it seemed to eat away at her magic.

Who knew what it was doing to these men who were absolutely submerged in the stuff.

Biting her lip, Lucy huffed out a breath and plunged her arms into the black substance, pulling them underneath Natsu's shoulders and tugging upwards with all her strength.

Whatever was hanging onto him didn't seem to want to let go. Whenever she tugged at him, it pulled back just as hard.

She buried her fingers into his torn shirt, "Natsu! Come on! Wake up!" She pleaded, her foothold growing slippery in the wet cave.

She refused to give up though, yanking again so his head rolled back onto her shoulder. Nose against her cheek, Lucy tried not to blush at how close Natsu's face had come to hers.

But she felt his nose twitch, and a low groan came from his throat.

"...Lucy...?" His voice was hoarse and body was limp, but just the sound of him waking up filled Lucy with such irrational joy she felt like crying.

"Natsu! You're okay!" She held onto him tightly, arms shaking to try and keep him from sliding back into the water.

"Hold on Lucy! We're coming!" Lucy's own voice cried out as Gemini, Scorpio, and Aries rushed into the cave as well startling both Lucy and Aquarius.

" _Scorpio_?" Aquarius asked in surprise and then squealed in delight, "I didn't know you were here!" She exclaimed rushing over to him and forgetting her fight for the moment, "How did you get here?!"

"Gemini found Miss Lucy earlier and we gave her our keys my bikini bombshell! We've been helping her out!" Scorpio grinned, pulling her into a hug and giving her a quick kiss, "Can you keep your water going while we help her rescue her man?"

"My... man?" Lucy squeaked, caught between mortification over what Scorpio was implying about her and Natsu and shock over the revelation that he was apparently Aquarius' much talked about boyfriend.

"Heh. I won't let this guppy come near you!" Aquarius smirked, and Lucy gawked in shock at how easily she co-operated.

"You're the best my Bahama mama!" Scorpio grinned again and pulled back to join Aries and Gemini who were already joining her to try and help pull Natsu out.

"We got this!" She called, waving him off, "Try and help the other villagers! But be careful! This water seems to drain magic!"

"Is that right?" Scorpio purred, aware Aquarius had heard, "Then I think it's about time we gave it something else to focus on right Aries?"

"I-if you think it will help." Aries murmured and thrust out her hands, "Wool wall!"

Lucy gaped as a huge puffy wall of pink wool appeared and began absorbing the surrounding water, draining it away and making it much easier to get to the trapped people. An effect Scorpio helped by filling the newly sectioned area with sand to absorb what was left. It was amazing. And the first time Lucy had ever seen what multiple spirits working together could really do.

She was definitely going to be redoubling her training after this!

First things first though.

She gave Natsu another hard tug, and this time with the water down to his knees, he pulled free with the barest of resistance.

"Got him!" She crowed, "Now let's free the others!"

"No you can't!" The vengeful spirit screamed as one by one her prisoners were released. And with each one pulled from her waters, the control over them seemed to completely drain away.

Her powers fell to such a degree, she was unable to even stand against Aquarius. Lucy watched the mermaid's beautiful form fade down to something smaller and smaller until all that was left was a tiny water snake.

Removing the captured spirits of the men she had ensnared had eradicated her powers, and the snake attempted to flee back into the waters.

Aquarius caught the creature and extended it in front of her by the neck as if she were holding something filthy.

"Pathetic," She sighed, a vein throbbing in her temple and her expression dark, "So this is your true form? You give mermaids a bad name."

Her attention immediately wavered away and Aquarius rushed over to Scorpio, flinging the trapped snake around without a care. She stuffed the poor creature into her urn and immediately cuddled up to Scorpio in such a sweet display of affection, Lucy thought she would be sick.

"Oh honey!" She gushed and snuggled into his chest, his arm wrapping around her securely, "Why don't we get out of this smelly cave together?"

"Absolutely wicked idea!" Scorpio laughed and flashed Lucy a salute over his shoulder, "See ya around Miss Lucy! We're outta here!"

Lucy watched as Aquarius and Scorpio disappeared, taking the water spirit with them as they faded back to the celestial realm.

"What's going to happen to her?" Lucy asked after a moment, "The snake I mean...?"

Aries shuffled a bit and used some of her wool to help dry Lucy off, much to her gratitude, "Ah... well..."

"She's going to face the Spirit King," Natsu's gruff voice came from her side and he rubbed his arms. Lucy dragged her attention over towards him.

Natsu looked quite a bit like a grumpy wet cat, and he had a strange look in his eyes she wasn't used to seeing.

"What?" She asked for clarification.

Aries nodded, "Ye-yes. She's a spirit, even if she isn't a celestial one, which means she will be given a punishment appropriate to her crimes."

Lucy blinked a little at that, "I didn't realize that the Spirit King ruled over all spirits and not just the celestial ones." She murmured, wondering if Juvia came under his jurisdiction too, but smiled, "At least it's all taken care of now, and everyone seems to be okay."

She glanced around for a moment to where the confused men were milling around, trying to understand what had happened to them, before looking back at her new spirits proudly, "You guys can head back if you want. I doubt I'll be up to making any contracts once we get everyone home." She laughed a little, "I'm pretty exhausted myself."

Aries smiled back at her new mistress, a good feeling settling into her heart at the promise of a contract with her, and nodded, "Of course Miss Lucy." She murmured, "We'll be ready whenever you are!"

"Thanks." Lucy murmured back and watched them vanish back to their world as well. She looked over at Natsu, who was still doing a good impression of a grumpy drowned cat, and giving her that weird look.

"Are you alright?" She asked, moving over to him and curling her hand around his arm, concern bright in her eyes.

He stared at her for a long moment, his memories of what the mermaid had done to him still fresh in his mind. But that simple touch, so full of care and concern and everything that was _them_ , reassured him.

 _This_ was the right touch.

This was his Lucy. His weird, dimension traveling, partner. She looked like a muddy drowned kitten, and he could practically taste their history between them.

It was _wonderful_.

His lips split into a wide grin as he curled his hand into hers, "You betcha!"

He would just keep what exactly had happened, and the new fire now sizzling through his veins for her, to himself. She didn't need to know any of that.

Not right now anyway.

Maybe later he would get the courage to tell her.

For now, this was okay.

Lucy's touch was reassuring, her presence soothing. While his pride was injured thanks to the spirit, for whatever reason Natsu never felt safer.

He squeezed his fingers around Lucy's hand, wondering why his heart felt so light. It was as if weight had been stripped away from it.

It was strange, but despite being half-drowned and basically useless in the last fight - Natsu felt stronger.

* * *

 _ **AGAIN! HAPPY TURKEY DAY!** _

**Thank you so much to everyone who dropped us a review! We really appreciate hearing from all of you! We got a few questions that I'll address and then do guest responses!**

 **1.) How many reviews equal a sneak peak? It depends on the chapter and circumstance, but it's usually at around 40 although I started them when we hit 50 per chapter.**

 **2.) Again, we update once every two days. Which means there are two days sandwiched between every update day.**

 **GUEST REVIEWS!** \- _**Guest** (Yep! Enter the other keys!) **\- Animallover** (Oho! Yeah here is your update and yep you were close when you guessed Siren. It isn't one, but it's close! Natsu is a little rough around the edges) - **Little Red** (Yes he did act on his confused feelios. He'll work on them some more!) **\- joide's kb 4ever** (Yep! We do have fast updates! This whole fic is written already!) **Guest/GraceRoyal** (We aren't too fond of them either, but it's definitely fun when their plans are foiled. :D Don't worry you won't have to worry about breathers, the whole fic is done already! And Nalu lemons are coming. Soon. Very. Very. Soon) - **Chipmunk** (BARELY chapter 34 you say? BARELY? The fic is over HALFWAY comes. It comes in waves.) **\- Guest** (We will never stop updating!) **\- Avengerika** (Sign up sheets to fight the ghost chick are in the lobby. I'm glad you're enjoying the fic as much as you are!) **\- Guest** (Don't worry, we're both okay! You're a little early in the schedule, the update happens tonight/tomorrow. Those were some interesting theories about the bond, but nope :'D ) _

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* * *

 _"I told you before I was born a human," Natsu looked at Lucy, who stared back at him with her full attention. He couldn't help but feel warm at how intently she was looking at him, as if knowing this was important._

 _"Not a lot of people actually know that fact about myself," He rubbed a hand through his hair, "Or know that my brother, who brought me back to life as a demon, was Zeref."_

 _Lucy's eyes widened, her mouth opening as she tried to place where she had heard that name so many times in the past. Natsu grinned crookedly._

 _Look at who was starting to recognize names. Finally._

 _"Wasn't he the one who started the Celestial War?" She asked, putting the pieces together with shocking speed. Natsu was impressed and nodded his agreement._

 _"Yeah. He was sort of like you."_


	36. Into the Woods

_**Act 3**_

* * *

 _ **36**_

 _"Sometimes people leave you_  
 _Halfway through the wood_  
 _Others may decieve you_  
 _You decide what's good_  
 _You decide alone_  
 _But no one is alone"_  
― Stephen Sondheim _ **, Into the Woods**_

* * *

 _Natsu… Can you hear me? Look through the gate..._

Natsu was exhausted. After the whole debacle with the evil-mermaid-spirit-thing, he was so tired he never even wanted to so much as look at a glass of water, much less a river again.

When he voiced his complaint to Lucy, she just advised him not to say something like that in front of Juvia otherwise she might get her feelings hurt.

And then he would get drowned.

Again.

Happy was sound asleep, curled up on their pack as the train rattled back to Magnolia. The little cat had also exhausted himself in the adventure despite not being a part of much of the action.

The party the villagers had made after their success in completing the job could rival one of Fairy Tail's own celebrations.

His stomach was a little queasy on the trip back, having used some of the medication Lucy brought him from her world. It wasn't as effective as Wendy's troia, but made travelling a hundred times more bearable than it would be without.

He blinked as a glass of water suddenly appeared in his vision, and he looked up to see Lucy extending it to him, "Here you go. Still not feeling good?"

"Not bad," Natsu smiled at her but accepted the cup gratefully. He gave it a sour look, still seeing the water as his nemesis, but since Lucy had gone through the trouble of fetching it for him, he supposed he'd survive. He drank it, despite the lingering taste of mud and river which refused to dislodge itself from the back of his throat.

It helped a little.

He leaned his head against the cool glass of the window that had been partially cracked open.

"Thanks," He set the glass aside and leaned back in his chair, watching as Lucy curled up on her seat next to him.

He glanced down at her, sitting so close to his shoulder and with her legs tucked neatly under her body. She sat innocently, but her bottom lip was caught between her teeth and she nibbled on it distractingly.

That increasingly familiar tightening in his stomach alerted him to the direction his thoughts were taking, as did the quickening of his pulse.

He cursed himself for getting so distracted over something as foolishly simple as her biting her lips. It was hard to dismiss the idea of leaning over to soothe her reddening mouth with his own.

His mind flashed to the memory of the spirit, pressing against him and using Lucy's mouth to kiss him. He wondered how the real one would feel.

The spirit had forced his feelings to the surface in a way Gray had only partially succeeded in achieving. Natsu was no fool. He had been the one to instigate that kiss with the serpent. Knowledge that it took Lucy's form didn't stop Natsu from wanting to scrub his tongue off, but it did help soothe him to know he had almost immediately recognized the fraud for what she was.

There was no denying he had been captured thoroughly under her spell.

He was forced to admit his feelings for the woman seated beside him. The one who drove his heart into his throat with a smile or a flash of humor in her eyes.

Lucy nibbled her lower lip again, the motion sending another jolt down into his stomach.

He was a goner.

Shaking his head to finally rid himself of that increasingly stubborn thought, he nudged her with his elbow, "What're the matter, you've got that creepy look on your face again."

"What?" Lucy protested at him, her cheeks flushing, "Do not!"

"Sure you do!" Natsu cackled playfully, pleased he could make her blush, "You never make that face unless you're thinkin' about something. So what is it?"

He would take any distraction he could get at the moment.

Lucy's blush deepened but she sighed, "Well, I was just thinking that since we got this job wrapped up so fast we'll have more time than we thought before the festival." She hesitated, "Maybe...we could go early?" She asked hopefully, "It'd be kinda nice to take a break and relax for a little while first."

Natsu blinked at her, not having expected that, "You mean you wanna go play tourist or something?"

Lucy nodded, "Yeah. We see a lot of new places, but it'd be nice to just explore one for a day or two before we had to get back to work y'know?"

That was all she wanted?

He burst into laughter over her blushing about this, "Why didn't you say you wanted a break?" He grinned, "Sure we can go early! It sounds like fun!" As long as he was with her he was happy to do pretty much anything.

His mushy thought turned to happy pride when her face lit up in delight, "Really?" She gasped, "Thank you Natsu!"

"No sweat!" He beamed, "We'll take Wendy and make it a real holiday!" He eyed her shrewdly, "But that wasn't all you had on your mind was it?"

He knew her well enough by now to know she didn't chew on her lip like that unless she was really trying to figure something out. And if she was trying to sidestep the issue then it had to be something big. Which meant he _really_ wanted to know.

Sure enough Lucy blushed again, "Well... it's just my curiosity. You don't have to tell me if you don't want, but..." She bit her lip again, making him actually twitch with the urge to lean over and suck that poor abused lip into his mouth, "How do you know so much about spirit politics?" She asked in a rush.

Huh?

Natsu blinked at Lucy, suitably distracted. He slowly tilted his head at her as if he hadn't heard her. Again, he didn't understand why she was worried about asking him a question like that, but then remembered for as smart as Lucy was, she didn't know the full history of this world.

"Oh, that," Natsu scratched his head, recalling how he explained to Lucy that the mermaid spirit would face judgement from the Celestial king.

"It ain't hard to guess why," Natsu slipped his hands into his pockets, "You've heard of the Celestial War once or twice before now, right?"

Lucy nodded, frowning to herself. Yes, she had recalled the war's importance.

Even Fairy Tail, to some extent, had gotten involved in the fight. Although it had largely been limited to dragons, demons, and other such creatures.

The records in her special book were incomplete. Although it made sense considering how Natsu had come to possess Leo's key.

"I guess, in some messed up way, you could say the Celestial War was my fault," Natsu frowned as he folded his arms over his chest, glancing out the window.

"I told you before I was born a human," Natsu looked at Lucy, who stared back at him with her full attention. He couldn't help but feel warm at how intently she was looking at him, as if knowing this was important.

"Not a lot of people actually know that fact about myself," He rubbed a hand through his hair, "Or know that my brother, who brought me back to life as a demon, was Zeref."

Lucy's eyes widened, her mouth opening as she tried to place where she had heard that name so many times in the past. Natsu grinned crookedly.

Look at who was starting to recognize names. Finally.

"Wasn't he the one who started the Celestial War?" She asked, putting the pieces together with shocking speed. Natsu was impressed and nodded his agreement.

"Yeah. He was sort of like you," Natsu leaned his arms down onto his knees, turning his gaze to stare at the wall in front of them as the train rattled onward.

"He was smart. Scary smart. Zeref could do anything he set his mind to, even something as crazy as bring the dead back to life," He shook his head, "He had plenty of time to figure out a way too. Mages have such long lives, it was like a blink of an eye to him. Most mages wouldn't attempt it, the cost is so steep. But- I guess he was lonely."

He glanced down at the compartment floor, an irritated growl building in his chest.

"Zeref looked up many ways to cheat death. One of those ways was with something called the Eclipse Gate, which harnessed the power of the Celestial Spirits and bound them to the keys they used as magical conduits," Natsu explained but still didn't look at her.

"Even though he constructed the gate, which he hoped could open a portal into the past to save me, I guess his research brought him to the demons instead. The Eclipse gate was later scrapped and its use changed," Natsu shrugged, "So for a time after he brought me back as a demon, he abandoned his research into the Celestial Gates."

"At the time, I was very confused and little," Natsu shrugged, "My brother tried to help me, but I was too powerful. I had such an incredible amount of demonic power in me, it probably would have killed me again. That's when I came to meet Igneel."

"My memories before him are really hazy. I can't say I remember much about Zeref. Just that he allowed Igneel to raise me and teach me dragon magic," His hand found Igneel's scarf and he smiled at Lucy, "You know what happened after that."

Lucy nodded, her hand finding its way into the crook of his arm, letting him draw strength from her, no matter how subconscious a reaction it was.

"You became a dragon after that, and met Leo - he was friends with Igneel, right?" Lucy asked encouragingly, Natsu nodded.

"Yeah. Leo and Igneel went way back, and when Igneel adopted me Leo kinda became like a big brother." His lips twisted into something that held too much regret to be a smile, but wasn't quite anything else either, "He wasn't exactly nest, but he was close. He helped teach me how to fight, and a bunch of other stuff."

Those had been good times. Some of the best times. And it hurt now to know they were long gone and that not all of it was because of Zeref.

"That's how you wound up with his key." Lucy murmured, "You inherited it from Igneel."

Natsu nodded, trying to swallow the lump of emotion that was trying to form in his throat, "Yeah." He flashed her a smile, "But he's way better off with you. He can actually do something constructive besides nag me and flirt with every woman he sees."

Lucy smiled back, but she curled closer to him anyway. To give up one of the few things he'd inherited from his adopted father... that had to have been hard. She wasn't sure she could've done it in his place.

Natsu watched her for a moment, appreciating the gesture for what it was, and returned to staring at the wall, "It wasn't long after that things went crazy." He continued quietly.

"Zeref decided he wanted us to be a family again, which meant me leaving Igneel. And that was something I didn't want. I didn't really remember Zeref and Igneel was my dad. There was no way I was going to leave him. But Zeref didn't see it that way, so he figured out how to jam the gates open so he could take me away from Igneel to a world where we could 'be a family again' or some crap like that."

The amount of bitterness in his tone hurt to hear and Lucy wrapped her arms around him, not caring that it left her sitting in his lap to do so, "That wasn't your fault Natsu." She murmured fiercely into his hair, "You were just a kid, and Zeref wanted to take you away from the only family you remembered. Zeref was to blame. Not you."

Natsu let out a hard laugh, although he didn't seem like he believed what she said, her words brought him some comfort. His arms wrapped around her waist instinctively, the steady comfort of her weight pressing against his lap was nice.

"I guess, but It sure as hell made the whole war complicated to explain. Igneel kept it a secret who my brother was, and swore Leo to secrecy. But the fight lasted a long time. I might have been really little, but I still fought with everything I had to stay with Igneel until-"

Natsu swallowed thickly and his grip on Lucy's hips tightened, his chest rising and falling to a beat only he could hear.

"Zeref hurt Igneel. Bad," He whispered, "I didn't think it was even possible, but he gave him injuries he later died from. Maybe he would have lived if I hadn't been so stupid and desperate to accept the council's help. But I wasn't thinking straight. I-... I fought with my brother."

"I don't know how I beat him, I was young, but I was so furious," Natsu said quietly, "We were alone in Mavis' library, a section of Fairy Tail I burned down a long time ago. I blacked out, and when I came around, I was standing on the battlefield, surrounded by celestial spirits, dragons, and mages, I used every ounce of my demonic and dragon magic, and attacked Zeref like a monster."

"I killed him, and he fell through the gate, which caused it to slam shut," Natsu finished, "I thought it would stay shut forever with Zeref gone, but then-"

"I showed up years later," Lucy finished the story.

With as much contact as Natsu had with the Celestial spirits over the years in the war, it only made sense he would know so much about it. But.. for some reason, Lucy had a feeling that Natsu's reputation as the Monster End had begun on that day.

Because wasn't it afterwards when Igneel died, Natsu was abandoned by his nest?

And then pushed away from the humans and demons he tried to make a new home with.

"Natsu..." Lucy breathed, her heart going out to him and met his eyes, "I wish I could undo what happened." She told him softly, but earnestly, "Or that I'd been there to fight with you. I really do."

Maybe she wouldn't have made much of a difference in the grand scheme of things, but at least he wouldn't have been alone. And that alone might've made a huge difference. Unfortunately, it was like wishing for another day with her mother. Something she might long for, but knew she would never get. All she could do was deal with what was and the moment.

Natsu blinked at her and gave her a small, bitterly sad, smile, "If you had you would've seen how much of a monster I really am."

Lucy shook her head, "If the stuff you pulled when we met wasn't enough to do that, then what makes you think I would ever see a monster in a frightened, grief stricken, little boy?" She asked softly.

Natsu blinked at her again, a bit thrown by her gentle logic, and something in him swelled with emotions he was having trouble naming.

It made him happy though, and the smile he gave her reflected that, "Thanks Luce." He murmured, allowing himself to hold her close and breathe in her scent. Strawberries and cream. It always soothed him, and he couldn't help basking in it now as it softened the sharp edges left by his memories.

It took several minutes but he eventually calmed down enough to pull away and smile at her again. That was when he became very aware that she was still in his lap and had her arms wrapped around him as tightly as he had his around her.

She was close. Very close. And all at once his thoughts derailed as he realized just how close those petal soft looking lips of hers really were.

Lucy became hyper aware of that fact when she felt his hand coming to rest from her hip to her lower back. Suddenly her position on his lap felt far too encompassing, and she realized it wasn't very lady-like of her to be sitting on him like this. But Natsu didn't seem to mind the position.

In fact, the way his warm hand gripped the bare skin of her thigh had her heart crawling into her throat. Heat radiated outward from his body, causing a flush to roll down her spine and decorate her cheeks.

She felt frozen where she was, barely able to breathe between the heat building between them. Lucy dropped a hand against his cheek, heart hammering in her chest.

She wet her lips, staring up at him, and the motion seemed to attract his attention downwards. Had he-?

The intensity behind his eyes was almost too hot to handle. His green eyes were sharp on her, intent with something instinctual that had a rush of excitement burning through her. She couldn't help but squirm on his lap, his grip tightening against her skin enough for her to feel the branding heat from his palm.

The soft inhale of breath from Natsu wasn't her imagination. It couldn't be.

The way he was looking at her now though wasn't fair. Natsu was attractive. It was something she had noticed from day one, even though at the time it had annoyed her. But now they had grown close together, Lucy didn't know how she could possibly resist him.

"Natsu..." She set a hand on the back of his neck, a hand hesitant at first, but more bold when he didn't pull away.

Natsu growled softly in response as he let her guide him closer. It felt like he was burning up inside, and he was absolutely loving it.

She was warm and pliable under his hands, and he itched to run them all over her and find out if she was as soft everywhere as she was here. He kept them steady though. He would not take more than she was willing to give. He was determined on that. No matter how much he wanted it.

And he wanted it very badly.

Ever since that moment on the river, when he'd been forced to face how much he truly desired from her, he'd been quietly burning. Now the real Lucy was here and inching towards him and he ached to share this flame with her. To make her burn for him the way he did her.

It was a sweet torment, and the slow anticipation was making it even sweeter even as he whined softly, pleadingly, for her to hurry. A sound that had an equally soft, breathless, laugh escaping her perfect lips but she did speed up.

He nearly groaned when their noses brushed and was practically quivering with excitement as their lips began to brush together.

 _Yes! This was what he wanted! This and so much more!_

But their moment was shattered by the sound of Happy whining as he woke up from his nap and sitting up, "Is there any fish?" The kitten mewled sleepily, rubbing his eyes with his paws.

Lucy ripped herself from Natsu so fast, the dragon was certain she was going to give herself a concussion just by accidentally flinging herself into the wall.

His heart was pounding in his chest as he watched Lucy tumble backwards off his lap and onto the floor of the compartment.

Despite his overall frustration over having been interrupted, Natsu couldn't help the snort of laughter that burst from him at the sight her of desperately trying to hold her skirt down as she tumbled onto the train floor.

Or how rapidly she rose to her knees, her face burning bright red.

His snort grew into a full on cackle, his arms folding over his stomach as he laughed and pointed, unable to voice words to the hilarity of what was happening.

They had been so close...

and then Happy-

and then the floor-

Natsu laughed harder, tears pricking at his eyes as he threw his head back, unable to stop himself.

Happy was very confused over what was happening, or how Lucy slowly rose up to her feet, looked insulted for a second, before she too joined Natsu in his wild giggles.

"Wow... you two are so weird," Happy gave them both a baleful look and curled back up onto the pack, looking at them attentively.

"Says the talking cat." Lucy quipped as she sat back down next to Natsu, her own heart still pounding fiercely. Both from what had happened and what had almost happened.

She shared a grin with Natsu and felt herself relax, despite the heat still throbbing through her, and the tingling and whining she felt in places. She could tell by the look in his eyes that Natsu was feeling exactly the same, and that made her feel better.

She giggled a little and curled up against him, happy to let the raging fire that had sparked to life between them settled back down into a simmer for now.

Of course, she knew it wouldn't stay there.

It couldn't now that they were aware of it. And they would have to talk about it soon. But for now at least she was content.

* * *

 **Mslead is sick. She can only weakly offer you a sneak peek and crawl off to bed. Love and smooches**

* * *

 _"Sounds fun," Gray grinned and stretched out, "Why don't we all go? The festival is on the outskirts of Magnolia. It's close so we can all put up for the night in the same place."_

 _"Ew, I don't want your stinkin' face getting in my way," Natsu growled at the ice mage._

 _Gray shoved his way back into Natsu's personal space, his eyes icy and irritated, "Oh yeah? Not like I wanna hang out with you anyway! It's just a great place for me and Juvia to go!"_

 _"No way! I called dibs!"_

 _"You can't call dibs on a festival you jerk!"_

 _"Watch me, I just did!"_


	37. The Princess Bride

**_Act 3_**

 ** _WARNING: NSFW_**

 ** _If you wish to skip it, watch out for the purity marks '###'_**

* * *

 ** _37_**

 ** _The Princess Bride_**

 _"As you wish..."_

 _―_ William Goldman ** _, The Princess Bride_**

* * *

"Natsu! Lucy!" Wendy exclaimed happily as the pair strolled back up to the guild and rushed up to greet them, "You're back early! How did the job go?"

"The usual." Lucy replied in amusement, "It snowballed into complete chaos, but we managed to get it done." She grinned, "And I came out with three new spirits in the bargain."

"Really?" Gray asked curiously, having shamelessly been listening from where he and Juvia were curled up together, "How'd you manage that?"

"They were Angel's spirits." Lucy explained, "Gemini, Scorpio, and Aries decided they didn't want to renew their contracts with her and were apparently trying to find me ever since then." She blushed a bit sheepishly, "I wish I'd known, but it turned out it was just as well I didn't. I'm not sure we could've pulled the job off if they hadn't been there to help."

"Did you find out what was causing it?" Juvia asked curiously, aware that nothing natural could cause disappearances like that.

"Yeah. It was some kind of angry mermaid spirit." Lucy shrugged, "She even managed to get hold of Natsu, but thanks to Aquarius and the others we got her. Last I saw Aquarius was taking her to the Spirit King."

"Wow..." Wendy breathed in awe, "That sounds amazing!" She exclaimed, "Do you think our next job will be that exciting?"

"I hope not!" Lucy laughed, "I could use a break!"

"No kidding!" Natsu piped up with a big yawn, and grinned at his little sister, "Lucy and I were thinking of heading to the festival town early to relax for a couple days before we got to work. You wanna come?" His grin widened to practically take up his whole face, "Rumor has it they've got some really awesome sights!"

"Yes!" Wendy agreed enthusiastically, clasping her hands together and looking between the two of them eagerly, "I wasn't expecting you two back for a little while yet, so I'm not packed. Give me a couple of minutes to get everything together!"

Natsu looked up to see Gajeel over by the request board, chewing on a bolt as he looked at his options.

"Oi, you coming too metal head? A festival is plenty of time for fun! Get a job later!" He shouted towards the iron dragon.

Gajeel huffed and glared at him over his shoulder, "Eh, and what do you know about that? You just got back from a job!"

However he took one look at Wendy's pleading face, standing next to Natsu, and promptly collapsed into a soft-hearted pile of scrap metal.

Lucy smothered a smirk as Gajeel reluctantly agreed to go for a couple of days and then leave on his next job. The brilliant smile on Wendy's face made it all worth it.

"Sounds fun," Gray grinned and stretched out, "Why don't we all go? The festival is on the outskirts of Magnolia. It's close so we can all put up for the night in the same place."

"Ew, I don't want your stinkin' face getting in my way," Natsu growled at the ice mage.

Gray shoved his way back into Natsu's personal space, his eyes icy and irritated, "Oh yeah? Not like I wanna hang out with you anyway! It's just a great place for me and Juvia to go!"

"No way! I called dibs!"

"You can't call dibs on a festival you jerk!"

"Watch me, I just did!"

"Aw, c'mon you two!" Lucy tried to soothe, "It's not like we have to stick together the whole festival or anything! And we won't all be staying in the same room right?"

"Yeah." Levy agreed, "Lucy's right. We'll just go to enjoy the festival." She glanced at Lucy, "Ah, that is, if you don't mind?"

Lucy laughed and shook her head, "Of course not! The whole point is to relax a little." She grinned at Natsu, "It'll be fun!"

Natsu blew out a hot sigh, and crossed his arms, "If you say so." He grumbled as what seemed like most of the guild started talking excitedly and it seemed a whole bunch were now wanting to go.

Great. Just great.

He'd been hoping for some alone time with his nest and Lucy.

But then again, Lucy was right. It wasn't like they had to stick with anyone once they got there. They could still get some time just them and the nest. He just had a greater chance of running into the likes of Gray was all.

Maybe Juvia would keep him busy or something.

A slim hope, but there it was.

Wendy gasped excitedly and rushed over to hug first Natsu and then Lucy, "This is going to be great!" She exclaimed, "Let me go pack! I'll be right back!"

Lucy smiled a bit as Wendy took off and sat down across from Levy to wait.

"You sure you don't mind us all descending on this?" Levy asked, a hint of worry on her face as she registered how exhausted Lucy really looked, but Lucy just shook her head with a smile.

"Nah. I'm not sure I'm up to rooming with everyone or anything, but it'll be nice to hang out for a couple days without a job hanging over our heads." She grinned, "I used to travel a lot back in my birth world, and the one thing I always wished for was a bunch of friends to share the sights with."

"Sooo," Cana hummed as she swayed up to Lucy. She dropped an elbow on her shoulder and leaned in close, "Anything fun happen on your last mission together?"

The wiggling of her eyebrows made Lucy swallow hard. She couldn't mean -

"Oh just the usual," Lucy shrugged dismissively, trying not to remember just how close she and Natsu had come just an hour earlier.

She bit the inside of her cheek to hide her secretive smile, but the glint in Cana's eyes was proof she hadn't been fooled.

Uh oh.

For whatever reason, Cana looked positively flustered over something, while Mira's gentle smile seemed to grow even wider.

Was she missing something here?

She couldn't ask Natsu if he caught anything, because he was already looking away, distracted by something else.

Specifically a giant tankard of alcohol he was speed chugging alongside Elfman.

She thought he was _tired_!

Not knowing where Natsu found his fathomless energy, Lucy resorted to sitting down and relaxing a little with happy before they, as a guild descended on the festival grounds.

-::-

A few hours, and one cart ride, later they finally arrived at their destination. It was a sleepy little farming town that supplied a fair number of the crops and other produce Magnolia used. It was quiet and relaxed without much to recommend it besides it's peace, charm, and a truly wonderful spa situated to show off some spectacular views of the countryside.

In short, it was everything a bunch of overworked wizards could possibly want to relax.

"Wow this is nice!" Lucy exclaimed, as they collectively invaded the spa and inn, "I'm surprised people don't come here just for this alone!"

"Most don't know about us miss." One of the attendants smiled, "We're not as big and flashy as other places and mostly cater to the local countryside."

Lucy shook her head, "Well, that just leaves more for us then!"

"No kidding!" Levy agreed with a laugh, "I've lived in Magnolia my whole life and had no idea this place was here!" She stretched, "It sure is nice to get out of the city for a little."

She grinned wickedly at Lucy, "What do you say we leave getting the rooms to the boys and go get a massage or something?"

"Yeah-" Lucy began only for the rest of the women to start sounding their own agreement, and in moments she was being pulled along by the others towards the back. She shot Natsu a helpless look and shrugged slightly apologetically for stranding him.

At least he would be able to join them once rooms were sorted out.

Natsu just shrugged, not seeing the point in worrying about it like Lucy seemed to. Of course he was pretty bad at ordering things in a way that didn't involve terrifying people - and he was still reluctant to part with his hard earned jewel.

But it annoyed Lucy whenever 'he acted like a caveman' or whatever it was that meant, so he behaved for the most part now.

Lucy usually took care of handling their room situation when they were on the road, but how hard could it be?

The answer to that was harder than expected.

There were so many options and suites, that Natsu was left staring at the list and trying to understand what the difference between singles, doubles, and couples meant.

Although he did have a _slight_ inkling what the couples room probably was referring to.

Gajeel looked to be struggling as well, and the two of them conspired together as they tried to understand what was happening.

However they were saved when Jellal approached them, an easy smile on his face that helped disarm the two dragons and their natural suspicions when it came to spending money.

"Having trouble?" He gently prodded.

Natsu looked up, pink hair sticking in every direction.

"I just want a room!" He hissed, "Y'know, one with four walls and a roof? How hard could that be?"

Jellal pushed the two dragon's up to the desk, where the confused clerk was waiting. Making the decision for them, he ordered each a single room with a balcony window in the direction of the meadows.

Seeing how relieved they were, Jellal hid his smirk and shepherded the two trusting fools off in the direction of the rooms he set up for them.

Gray blinked and slid up to Jellal, "So."

"Yes?" Jellal asked, with just a trace of smugness.

"I thought you put your evil mastermind days behind you."

"Erza has a take in this ongoing bet, losing is unacceptable," Jellal chuckled.

"Man, that's just cold," Gray shivered, which earned him a smirk of ever growing pride on Jellal's face.

"Coming from you, that's quite the compliment."

Gray snorted and shook his head, "I ever tell you I'm happy you're on our side now?" He drawled.

"Not half as happy as I am to be here." Jellal replied smoothly and stepped back up to the counter with an equally smooth smile to order one of the couples rooms for himself and Erza.

He had a magic ring in his pocket that he was sincerely hoping would be adorning his Titania's finger by the end of their stay, and would result in her moving out of Fairy Hills and into the house he'd built for them.

It had taken a long time, but he was finally ready.

It felt really good.

Gray's lips twitched upwards as he shamelessly listened in, and slung his bag over his shoulder to head to his and Juvia's room. It sometimes boggled his mind that of all people they were the first to tie the knot.

He tried to ignore the sound of Gajeel cackling as he realized what Jellal had done as he passed, mentally confirming what everyone had already suspected, and smirked broadly at Natsu's loud, "Dammit Jellal! Where's the other bed?!"

He hoped, for all their sakes, that Lucy knew what to do with such a setup. Because from the sounds of it... Natsu had no clue.

-::-

To say the room had been a debacle was saying it lightly. Natsu had been more embarrassed to find out Jellal had tricked him as opposed to Lucy, who was just mortified. Although Natsu didn't see why.

They shared a bed all the time. Whether that was with a sleeping bag or a single room. For whatever reason though, the fact that the guild seemed to know about that was the large cause of her embarrassment.

Natsu didn't get it. He really didn't. Curling up next to Lucy was actually something he found immense pleasure in.

Lucy for her part was doing her best to look at everything but Natsu as she puttered around their shared room. She didn't have a lot on herself, just a nightie. After her bath and massage with the girls, she had been absolutely shocked to find out Natsu had gotten them a room with just a single bed in front of the whole guild.

As much as she wouldn't mind sharing the bed with him, it really confused her over everything since... there was most definitely something between them.

"C'mon Lucy, what're you being all weird over? We sleep together all the time," Natsu said flippantly.

Lucy whirled around, her cheeks burning bright red. The way he has phrased it made it seem like-

The thought died like it had been taken out back and shot the moment she laid eyes on him. He had taken advantage of her pacing, and had stripped himself completely down to his boxers.

No matter how many times she saw all that tan, carved muscle, it still had the effect of pulling her up short. Perhaps it was because it was so rare to see a man like Natsu in her world- but she really could not get used to it.

And despite the fact she had seen him almost completely shirtless in the past, his favored vest having been what he donned in the early days of their partnership, she hadn't seen that in some time.

And now she was treated to Natsu with almost no clothes on, pulling back the covers of their shared bed.

Perhaps if she just laid back and thought of England she would be able to handle crawling into bed with him?

Lucy snorted to herself over the ridiculous thought. Crawling into bed with Natsu was in no way comparable to that. It _had_ helped distract her a little though. For which she was grateful. Ever since that moment on the train she'd been hyper aware of him.

Though she'd struggled not to show it for reasons that no longer mattered thanks to Jellal.

She would have to get him back for this.

Maybe Jell-O in his boots or something? She was pretty sure Natsu and Happy would be thrilled to help her prank him considering how often they liked to prank others.

Seriously, for a badass dragon Natsu tended to act more like a mischievous, cackling, five year old. It was kind of cute when it wasn't directed at her.

She blinked a little as it suddenly dawned on her that Natsu was a dragon. And as such he should've never gotten caught in the mermaid's spell. According to Gemini anyway.

She cocked her head curiously as she slid in next to him, her brain too busy turning over this new puzzle to be distracted by a mostly naked Natsu within arms reach.

"Natsu, can I ask you something?"

He blushed a bit as he wrenched his eyes away from her chest, grateful she'd appeared distracted and hadn't noticed him staring, "Sure. What's up?"

Lucy looked at him, mild confusion on her face, "I just realized that the mermaid's spell didn't affect you at first, but then she captured you. How did that happen?"

His mouth dropped open, brow furrowing as he looked at her, "What do you mean how? She just captured me?" He replied, uncomprehending of her question.

He yelped a bit when Lucy tugged on a few locks of his bangs, pulling his face down towards hers, "Ow what!"

"You shouldn't have been able to be taken," Lucy puffed her cheeks out at him. He gave her a curious look.

"Why couldn't I have been?" Natsu asked, almost looking offended that he wasn't supposed to be the target of being spirited away. Which was ridiculous, but of course Natsu would take offense to something as insane as that.

"Because- well," Lucy stammered as her thoughts raced to the men in the village, "All of the other ones were _lured_ away by the creature. I mean you weren't, right? You just fought her, I don't really see you losing to her."

She watched his expression clear and grow thoughtful, his eyes lifting up towards a spot over her shoulder, as if hoping the wall would give him an answer.

But then his gaze dropped level, back to her and she felt herself locking into space, Natsu's eyes boring into hers.

"I-... It's nothing, just..." Natsu's cheeks turned red.

He mumbled something she couldn't quite hear and she leveled an exasperated look at him.

"I saw you okay?" He huffed more loudly, matching her look for look, "I couldn't hear her stupid singing or whatever, but she came out of the mist looking just like you. She even had your new keys and stuff, so I thought she was you."

He shrugged uncomfortably, "It was a good enough distraction she caught me."

Oh.

She hadn't considered that as a possibility.

It certainly made sense, but part of her couldn't help but wonder if that counted as a lure or not.

Oh who was she kidding? She was hoping it did.

She'd already acknowledge how she felt about Natsu, and she couldn't help sniffing around looking for clues that he felt the same way.

Granted, she already knew he desired her at least thanks to that near kiss on the train. She just wished she knew if he loved her or if it was more of a friends with benefits thing.

Of course, knowing him, he wouldn't even see the difference.

Not for the first time she cursed his complete rejection from society, and the damage that had caused his emotional growth.

She pushed that thought to the side for the moment though, "Oh. I didn't realize she could do that."

Which seemed a bit silly in retrospect, but there it was.

"Yeah, well it came to a surprise to me as well," Natsu grumbled, his arm resting heavily across Lucy's waist. He looked sour at the reminder of his failure in the mission, but his expression was strangely... conflicted.

Lucy's intuition flared and she squirmed to free am arm between their bodies, her hand rising to tap lightly at his nose.

Green eyes crossed at the motion and she raised an eyebrow at him.

"I just don't get it," Lucy knew she was fishing, trying to get _some_ kind of information out of Natsu which could be determined as something on the _useful_ side of things.

"Sure I could see her getting the drop on you by copying me, but dragging you into her harem? She must have distracted you really well," Lucy snorted.

That was when she saw it. In the widening of Natsu's eyes, the sheer panic he tried to hide, and the way his cheeks turned the color of Erza's hair.

Lucy frowned.

"What is it? What happened?" She demanded.

Natsu squirmed again, his knees brushing against the top of her thighs, his throat swallowing thickly.

"You could say that," Natsu murmured reluctantly, a flash of fear echoing in the back of his eyes as he looked at Lucy. But it seemed his need to always tell her the truth overlooked his personal feelings on the matter.

"I-... I kissed her," Natsu looked pale, his eyes casting down at the pillow. His lips barely moved and he froze, as if expecting Lucy to recoil from him in disgust or rage.

Lucy was _stunned_ to say the least.

Natsu had kissed the spirit?

She doubted there was any way that an image of her looking like a drowned cat in the middle of the woods would send Natsu into a frenzy of lust. Which meant...

He'd done it because he had feelings for her.

The thought filled her with warmth and happiness. Enough it felt like her heart was going to burst.

He had _feelings_ for her.

Okay, so it wasn't exactly a declaration of love, but it was more than enough to know he cared for her as more than a friend. She could work on love later.

She smiled broadly at the thought, though he didn't see it, and in fact seemed to be curling up into a miserable ball.

It took her a moment to realize he must be interpreting her silence as disgust or something, and a trickle of anger washed through her. That was most _definitely_ not the case.

Though she was more than a little annoyed that the spirit had been the one to get the kiss instead of her.

A deliciously wicked thought crossed her mind and she shifted as she rubbed her hands over Natsu's shoulders, ignoring the way he jumped a little at the contact.

"Is that so?" She purred into his ear, heat and anticipation coiling in her at the bold move, "Somehow I doubt that snake was able to do justice to _my_ kissing."

She pressed her lips lightly against his neck, just behind his ear, "Would you like me to prove it?"

Corded muscles jumped against her mouth, Natsu's breath blowing hot against her neck. She had the pleasure of feeling Natsu stiffen in shock, but slowly relax, turning his head enough for them to separate.

His wide eyes locked onto her, and Natsu looked like he was struggling not to swallow his own _tongue_.

"Prove...?" He breathed out, barely seeming to comprehend what she was saying. But that was fine, Lucy hadn't expected his shell-shocked mind to be able to.

Hoisting herself up onto her elbow, her heart racing with a mad rush of adrenaline, she pressed her hand against his jaw experimentally.

When Natsu didn't pull away, his eyes flickering down her face and a hesitant smile tugging at his lips, Lucy knew she was in the clear.

Natsu's self-doubt would be the death of him one of these days. How quickly had he forgotten about their near-kiss on the train? Or had he been afraid she was going to smack him for kissing the spirit instead of her.

Lucy was tempted, but considering it wasn't really his fault, she could give him a pass.

"You're going to drive me crazy one of these days Mr. Dragneel," Lucy whispered, and pressed her lips against his warm ones.

Natsu squeaked a little in surprise at the sensation, but it quickly turned into a groan of pure pleasure as her lips caressed his. The feel of her lips against his was not like it was before. Soft and hesitant, but with heat and hunger, with enough contact it was like electricity was jumping through his veins.

It wasn't the fiery kiss he'd shared with the spirit. Or even the heat of the almost kiss from their trip back. This was different. Softer. Gentler. And somehow that made it even better.

Heat he understood.

Gentle was still often a foreign concept.

And that was so very _Lucy_ that his heart was ready to burst. _This_ was his Lucy. Despite her boldness she didn't demand. She simply did as she'd always done and gently showed him the way. She never took.

But he surprised himself when he realized he _wanted_ her to.

He curled his arms around her and pulled her a little closer, shivering at the feel of her pressing against him in such a way, and tentatively deepened the kiss.

He was still afraid of asking for too much, despite how much he wanted it, but he was rewarded with a happy noise from her as she gently coaxed his mouth open and shocked the life out of him by slipping her tongue inside.

This was a kind of kissing he'd never heard about before, but oh he liked it! Heat exploded through him at the sensations she was producing, and he growled softly as he returned the kiss with growing hunger.

She giggled against his lips at his sudden ferocity, but moaned happily as they lost themselves to the pleasure until air became a necessity.

"Where did you learn to kiss like that?" Lucy panted softly, her eyes glazed and dark in a way that had him growling in pleasure. He definitely liked that look on her face.

Her hands trailed down his chest, fingers traveling down the ridges of his stomach. Every brushing touch made it feel like his skin was jumping, jolting awake in new ways he had never been able to experience before.

Sure, he knew what was happening and had even done a bit of exploration in his past. But her hands were completely different from his own, and every press of her skin against his had more of his blood pounding south.

"Just now," Natsu replied dizzily, melting back into her kiss when her mouth descended on him once more. It was addicting, fun, and gods did it feel _great_.

It was completely unlike the water spirit too. Natsu could _feel_ their history in every tangle of his hair in her fingers, in every nip of his teeth against her lower lip.

He could feel it in the air they shared when they took greedy breaths between their kisses.

His heart chanted her name to the rhythm of an erratic beat. Natsu's hand lifted to fist his fingers into her golden hair, unable to stop himself from playing with the finely spun treasure.

"Gyah!" He jerked out, the embarrassing noise escaping him when he felt Lucy's clever hands rake her nails across his sides. His eyes flew open wide, cheeks burning from the sharp pleasure which had taken control of him, making him far more vocal in his surprise than he predicted.

He hadn't realized he was so sensitive.

Chest heaving, he growled against Lucy's giggling mouth. Her hips wiggled closer, taunting him with their inviting press near his groin.

"L-Lucy-" Natsu's voice gasped, eyes glazed and lips fighting to catch her elusive ones, "What're you-...?"

The questioned died on his lips when he got a good look at her face. Her honey brown eyes were dark. The way she gnawed on her lower lip was inviting, and the pull of her hands around him made the air rush from his lungs.

He suddenly knew what she wanted. To finish this new adventure they'd started.

####

The thought nearly had fire erupting from him as he realized suddenly they were alone in the room, sharing a bed, and barely clothed.

His mouth went dry at the half understood implications, and a hot growl rumbled in his chest. It was answered by a wicked grin from Lucy as she pressed against him, and this time there was much less preventing him from feeling every inch of her soft curves. Or to prevent her from feeling what the sensation was doing to him.

He leaned closer, once more letting her pull him in, and this time there was no Happy to interrupt.

His heart thundered in his chest in anticipation and he simultaneously tried to explode and melt as her petal soft lips finally met his. He could never tire of it. He groaned softly and pulled her closer, his hand sliding over her panty clad bottom and instinctively pulling her hips against his.

Something within him nearly burst with absurd pride when he was rewarded with an approving sound he urgently wanted to hear from her again. Many times. Her back bowed, his fingers skimming across the arch of her spine, and he had just enough time to marvel at the response before her mouth robbed him of the air in his lungs.

Their kisses deepened into something that was darker and more primal than anything he'd experienced before. It was dizzying, and it made all of his sides desperate for more. Demon, dragon, or human, all of him smelted down into one burning core under her onslaught. For once in his life though he didn't try to lead the way.

Despite his heat he was still nervous about pushing beyond what she wanted. Instead he followed her guidance and quickly realized that while he didn't know much about what he was doing... she did. She was skilled in fact. Perhaps enough for both of them.

More importantly, it assured him she _did_ want more.

With that thought he pulled reluctantly away, aware he needed to let her know this despite his brain threatening to melt. His first kiss with the mermaid had been nothing like this, and now he was having trouble thinking much less responding, "Luce..." He panted, "I don't...I've never..."

Understanding at once flashed across Lucy's face and she smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry." She purred, "I'll show you."

Show him-? Before he had time to comprehend what that even meant, Lucy was guiding him onto his back, her leg stretching over his hips as she settled down on his lap. This time however, without the bulk of clothes between them it was like a surge of electricity jolted through him. It shuddered through him, setting him ablaze.

"Lucy," He growled thickly, smoke rising out from the corners of his mouth, fire burning in his chest and causing the temperature to spike between them. The woman against him didn't seem to mind any of these things.

She slid the straps of her nightie down her shoulders, inviting in the way they draped against her arms.

Lucy guided his face back towards her and pressed her mouth eagerly against his smoky lips. The heady grunt he made against Lucy caused her to sigh with delight and instinctively her hips rolled against his.

Natsu's spine went rigid, and Lucy felt his muscles tense, rippling under her touch at the unfamiliar sensation. It took a moment for him to relax again and open his dark green eyes, but once he did, Lucy knew precisely what he wanted.

Growing bolder with each passing second, Natsu gripped her arm, the other hand sliding up to cradle the back of her head and fist a handful of her hair. He dragged her into a devouring kiss, fangs biting punishingly into lips and leaving their mark. It was a little clumsy, but it did not lack in passion. Natsu was practically brimming with it.

She pulled away enough to lift Natsu's hand on her arm, guiding his burning palm to her chest. Lucy squirmed at the first touch of his large hand gripping her, his thumb just grazing her through her shirt.

He froze at the new movement, his eyes on his hand as it discovered new territory. Lucy watched the gears clinking together in his head, his other rising to join its brother. Keening softly at the sensation of him gripping her, Lucy arched her hips forward to encourage him, her hands resting on top of his scarred knuckles and squeezing his fingers for him so he could take the hint.

Natsu surged to life at that encouragement, his pelvis lifting up in an instinctive buck to grind up into Lucy's circling hips. Slowly his hands squeezed her breasts, cautiously fondling his prize to see what she would enjoy.

He wanted to hear more of her noises. Each one that parted her swelling lips was just as encouraging as the last, and they were oddly drugging. The power they held over him was absolute.

"Natsu..." Lucy moaned, the feel of him caressing her and rocking against her making her brain melt. It had been a long time since she'd done even this much and she hadn't realized just how hungry she was for it.

She rocked her hips eagerly against his, crying out softly in pleasure when he grazed a particularly sensitive spot and wished she dared to pull his shorts down and show him everything. But even if she'd been ready for that step she was pretty sure he would literally explode.

This was quite enough though.

She leaned eagerly into his touch for several moments before getting impatient and tugging her night shirt down enough to free her breasts for his enjoyment.

This seemed to open up whole new options as suddenly he was rubbing his hot, calloused, thumb against her painful nipples directly and her brain went hazy with pleasure. Another long moan pulled from her lips as she shivered under his touch.

It was glorious.

It wasn't enough.

The friction was delicious, but it wasn't quite enough. She needed a little more. Desperate now, she slid a free hand down into her panties to rub eagerly at her clit.

She didn't expect him to notice the movement.

She expected him to follow even less.

But Natsu had always been good at surprising her, and only moments after she'd done it, his hot fingers followed inquisitively.

The result was an explosion of pleasure as his scorching hands replaced hers and she wildly manipulated them until he was stroking her himself.

"God Natsu..." She groaned, moving against him, leaning over to pull him into another desperate kiss.

It was easily the most beautiful thing Natsu had ever seen in his life.

He'd never dreamed something like this could happen to him, and now that it was he couldn't get enough of the look of passion on her face. The way her eyes were dark and glazed with pleasure. Pleasure _he_ was giving her.

It was as intoxicating as the noises she made, and twice as addictive.

He quickly found though that her perched on him like that was not conducive to him being able to reach all of her easily. Something he quickly found he didn't like. So he curled his hands around her hips and rolled her onto her back with a dark growl.

This was _much_ better! Now he could properly pay attention to everything she wanted him to do.

He immediately missed the sensation of her hips grinding down against his, but with as tense and coiled as his body was, he knew he probably wasn't going to last long anyway. There was heat throbbing in his groin that neared levels of discomfort and screamed for relief. He ignored it for the moment though, and set his hands on her knees to part her legs with his broad shoulders.

Eyes raking across her, his breath seized in his chest at the sight of her flushed, squirming body beneath him. Slowly he lowered his head, kissing a light line from her belly button up her ribs.

The whole time he moved, his eyes were focused on Lucy's face. Hair clung to her cheeks and shoulders, long locks falling over her breasts. Impatient, he brushed them away one hand coming to sink into her mound.

His mouth covered the other, his tongue circling with curious exploration around her nipple, eyes drawn on Lucy's face. Lucy bit her lips at the intensity in which he watched her, like understanding her body was a battle he wanted to win.

It was the same devilish, instinctual focus he used while fighting, sleuthing out what made his opponent go weak. And in this case, despite his clumsy moments, Natsu was learning.

It seemed the only thing he was using as his guide, were Lucy's occasional corrections, along with the sounds of her breathing and heart.

He left shallow bite marks over her chest, his hand squeezing and filling itself with her heavy breasts. His other hand snuck between her legs, re-discovering that one spot on Lucy that seemed to make her see stars.

Rewarded by the sudden, harsh moan that came from her, Natsu felt her legs squeeze around her shoulders to prevent him from leaving. As if he would do that.

A moment later though, Lucy pushed her legs away from him, causing Natsu to freeze as ice-cold terror washed over him. Afraid he had done something wrong, he held absolutely still.

But his fears were unfounded when a moment later Lucy ripped her panties and nightie off and threw them somewhere over his head.

"More!" Lucy panted, and Natsu felt himself throb hotly in response.

Taking his cue from her he pulled his own underwear off, groaning softly as he was freed from his confinement, and descended on her again.

"Lucy..." He growled thickly and pulled her into a hungry kiss as his fingers found their purchase against her again. This time, she bucked wildly as he slipped and slid his fingers against her soaked folds. Her movements became more fevered with every stroke, and while he was tempted to pull away and savor the sight, the way she clung to him told him he knew better than to stop.

Besides... she was even more beautiful now.

Her arousal was thick and heavy in the air and it made him throb desperately with want, and a distant part of him wondered if she tasted as good as she smelled. The thought made him twitch and tighten even more, and he felt as if he was poised to explode at any moment.

He leaned up to capture her swollen lips again, rocking his hips eagerly against hers, and nearly crying from the sensation of her rubbing against him directly.

It seemed that was all she needed as Lucy suddenly froze again, and there was a moment of complete stillness before she suddenly arched her back and screamed his name as she shattered beneath him.

The sight, sound, and feel of her like that, completely helpless, and lost to her pleasure, had the tight coil in his own belly suddenly snapping and his roar joined hers as pleasure unlike any he'd ever dreamed of tore through him with the force of an explosion.

Natsu barely caught himself on shaky forearms, his eyes hazy with pleasure. He let out a rough gasp, feeling himself empty between their rutting bodies and grow soft.

He was forced to ride the wave of his pleasure, his jaw locking and tensing at the feel of her laying under him, soft, sweet and so lax. Rolling onto his side, he avoided crushing Lucy, twisting his waist and hips so he was panting, lying on his back with Lucy's head pillowed against his bicep.

Panting, he stared up at the ceiling lazily, mouth parted and heart racing.

Slowly, the fever in his blood began to calm, his need simmering down to something manageable. Natsu turned his head to peer over at Lucy. She watched him with such a sweet smile on her face, Natsu thought his heart would explode.

"That was..." He swallowed.

Lucy's hand skittered across his chest, her every touch feeling like fire against his sensitive skin. Natsu's breath caught as she curled in close to him, bringing along the intoxicating scent of their coupling.

####

It wasn't necessarily the scent of what they did, more so of what it had meant. Natsu's heart felt very full, like he was filled with affection for only this woman. Which, he already knew, he was.

"Yeah," Lucy murmured against his neck, curling up against him for warmth. Now that they were done, he realized they had kicked the blanket to the foot of the bed at some point.

He shifted to get it, dragging it up to his waist, but unable to tug it any higher thanks to their tangled bodies. Unwilling to let go of Lucy, he ignored the task and wrapped his arms around her to keep her warm.

The understanding in her eyes, and the contented smile on her face made giddiness run through him. This was good..? right?

He didn't know what it all meant. But- it had to mean something.

Cautiously, he pressed a gentle kiss against the crown of her head. She snuggled in closer to him.

"Night Lucy."

"G'night Natsu."

 _...See you soon Natsu..._

* * *

 ** _I honestly don't have anything to say other than an evil laugh. You should thank Kytrin though. this was originally split into two chapters. I wanted to drag out your torment just a liiiiiiiiiiiiiiittle while longer, but she wanted to have mercy on you all since the first part of the chapter was just too short._**

 ** _THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED! We had an incredible amount of reviews!_**

 ** _Guest responses - Animallover_** _(You're very welcome! Yes it makes me happy to see Natsu's development as a character too. You think we're still cruel? Well I guess the jury is still out on that!) - **Guest** (kissblocker extraordinaire) **-Lkityan02** (Thanks!) **Eden** (Aw, don't hold it against Happy, he's adorable!) - **Avengerika** (Don't worry, I'm fine! I hope this chapter satisfied you!)  
_

 ** _SNEAK PEEK BELOW!_**

* * *

 _There was no room for doubt now. She was well and truly in love with her ferocious dragonslayer._

 _She bit back a giggle as he rolled over a bit and began drooling on his pillow. Yep. That was her prince charming._

 _But really she wouldn't have it any other way._

 _She glanced at the time and stretched a bit as she gently disentangled herself from him. She didn't have the heart to wake him, so she was going to tiptoe off for a shower. At least that was her plan, but no sooner had she sat up than sleepy green eyes fluttered open._

 _"Lucy?" Natsu mumbled, raising his head a little to blink at her, "Whatcha doing?"_


	38. The Hunchback of Notre Dame

**_Act 3_**

* * *

 ** _38_**

 ** _The Huntchback of Notre Dame_**

 _"Love is like a tree: it shoots of itself; it strikes it's roots deeply into our whole being, and frequently continues to put forth green leaves over a heart in ruins. And there is this unaccountable circumstance attending it, that the blinder the passion the more tenacious it is. Never is it stronger than when it is most unreasonable."_

― Victor Hugo ** _, The Huntchback of Notre Dame_**

* * *

"Wow... I think they might've heard heard that all the way over in Crocus." Cana drawled as she took a swing of her drink, and smirked at the sight of her more red faced guild mates, "It's about time though."

"A-ah, di-did they...?" Wendy stuttered, her entire face redder than a tomato, and Cana ruffled her hair with a grin.

"You bet they did little lady!" She replied and then laughed at Wendy's expression, "C'mon, it's nothing to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. It's perfectly natural." She shrugged, "Besides, we live a long time. We can't afford to get hung up on embarrassment."

Wendy blinked up at her, not having thought of it like that before, and smiled a little, "Well, as long as they're happy right?"

"Exactly!" Cana crowed in triumph.

"Cana..." Jellal purred from where he was sitting with a pink cheeked Erza, and gave her a slightly wicked smirk, "I believe this means it's time to conclude the bet you've been running."

Cana froze at his words, and stared at him, "Y-you! You set this up!" She spluttered at the smug looking bastard, and gaped when he laced his hands together as if he was sitting on a Magic Council meeting from his Segrain days.

"I may have... provided the setting." He replied smoothly, his smirk widening, "But I assure you, anything that happened they did of their own accord."

"That's cheating!"

"Hardly. Natsu and Lucy live together in a one room apartment. The only difference between that and this is the lack of two beds. Something I understand they don't always use under normal conditions."

Cana shook her bottle at him, the contents of it sloshing around the glass container. Her cheeks were rosy and she opened her mouth to argue, but let out a loose sigh when his calculating gaze fell on her.

She had a feeling that no matter what argument she put forth, he would have an counter. Which just meant next time... she would have to get creative.

Besides, she still had a stake in the ongoing bet of when Jellal would finally stick his money where his mouth was and propose to Erza. She was feeling lucky tonight.

She huffed, turning to her bag and digging out Erza's winnings, shoving it over to the couple.

"Excellent Cana, I'm glad you're so agreeable to this," Erza smirked at her, tucking her hands around her pile of jewel, even though her face was as red as her hair, "I-It was clear this was a solid victory."

Sensing the knight's embarrassment, even despite her age over such matters, Cana leaned forward with her legs in a wide stance, "Oho, Erza. Whaddya say? Wanna play for keeps? See if those two are going to play for a round two?"

"I-I don't think that'll be necessary! We should leave the couple to their evening!" Erza squeaked and shoved the earnings into her overnight bag, standing rigidly at Jellal's side. The man gave her an amused grin and took her hand.

"Erza's quite right," Jellal's heart thumped with nerves over what he planned, and gently tugged his lady towards where he had their suite, "And if you would excuse us Cana, Erza and I will take our leave to enjoy our winnings."

He was certainly not going to propose to Erza in front of the guild.

Even if his nerves hadn't been stretched thin it just didn't seem right. They were both very private people, and while neither would dream of denying the guild their celebration the moment itself was reserved for them alone.

He just hoped she said yes.

He smiled a little as he guided her to their room, and unlocked the door. She marched inside without a second thought only to stop cold when she saw the interior.

"Do you like it?" He purred softly as he stepped up behind her after putting their bags down and locking the door, "I thought perhaps we could treat ourselves a little on this vacation of ours."

He ran his hands tenderly over her shoulders and down her arms before wrapping his arms around her and nuzzling her neck softly, amused by her shocked reaction.

"Jellal I..."

He chuckled and swept his gaze over the room itself. The staff had done a wonderful job in the short time frame he'd given them to work with.

There was a romantic candle-lit dinner for two sitting out on their balcony. Little lit candles placed all around the large hot tub in the bathroom, still hot thanks to the fire lacrima inside. And flowers everywhere.

"Jellal," Erza said turning in his arms to look up at him intently, "What is this? It's not a special occasion."

He chuckled as he curled his hands into hers, acting far more confident than he felt, and tugged her gently into the center of the room. He understood her confusion. He tried his best to show her every day how much he loved her, but he didn't often go all out like this.

"It could be." He replied, caressing one hand and subtly reaching into his pocket for the box there, "But that depends on you."

"Me? What?"

He gently caressed her cheek, "My Erza." He murmured, "Our path has been a long and difficult one hasn't it? Friends to enemies and back to much more." He shook his head, "I can still hardly believe that you never stopped loving me in all that time. As I never stopped loving you."

He stared deeply into her eyes, "I can't imagine the man I would've become without you there. I don't think I want to." He dropped smoothly to one knee, trying not to fumble at her sudden gasp of understanding, and opened the box to her, "I know I'm unworthy of you, but I hope you'll consent to remain by my side and forge a new path with me?"

Erza's eyes went wide, her mouth dropping open and her heart racing into her throat. She reached out a shaking hand to touch the ring nestled inside the velvet box.

"You are worth more than you think Jellal," Erza whispered, her fingers closing around his wrist. She met his dark, hopeful eyes, her hand moving from his arm up to his face.

Thumbing the red ink under his right eye, Erza blinked back her tears.

"Yes," She laughed wetly at him, "You silly, foolish man. I will marry you."

She jerked him to his feet with considerable force, nearly staggering Jellal an inch off the floor.

Her arms wrapped around her fiancé, and she pulled him into a joyous kiss, fingers digging into his collar.

Jellal laughed into the sloppy kiss, finding the moment perfect despite his fiancé's bruising grip and her eager smiles.

"I love you Erza," Jellal whispered, voice hoarse with laughter, his eyes gleaming with tears, "Now until the stars dim in the sky."

She nodded, her laughter shaking through her and sank into his embrace.

"That sounds good to me," Erza looked up at his face, remembering the trials they had been forced to stand through together. And the silly time he had lied about having a fiancé. Now that was a title she proudly held.

"But if you don't mind," Erza laughed quietly, her hair tossing over her shoulder, "I think dinner can wait just a little while longer."

-::-

The next morning Lucy slowly awoke to find herself still tangled up with Natsu. She smiled as her memories of the night before danced before her eyes and for a moment she wished she was a cat so she could just purr in her contentedness.

She shifted a bit so she could lean forward and plant a lingering kiss on her dragonslayer's cheek, and wondered just how they'd managed to make the journey from enemies to lovers.

She supposed what they said was true...sometimes the journey was more important than the destination. And they'd had quite a journey so far. Though she had to admit she rather liked this destination.

Natsu had proved beyond a shadow of a doubt last night that he was as passionate in bed as on the battlefield, and despite his inexperience she was certain she'd never been more satisfied. It was really true that emotions made all the difference.

The thought made her smile as she watched him sleep.

There was no room for doubt now. She was well and truly in love with her ferocious dragonslayer.

She bit back a giggle as he rolled over a bit and began drooling on his pillow. Yep. That was her prince charming.

But really she wouldn't have it any other way.

She glanced at the time and stretched a bit as she gently disentangled herself from him. She didn't have the heart to wake him, so she was going to tiptoe off for a shower. At least that was her plan, but no sooner had she sat up than sleepy green eyes fluttered open.

"Lucy?" Natsu mumbled, raising his head a little to blink at her, "Whatcha doing?"

She smiled at him and leaned over to gently kiss him, "I was going to grab a shower." She grinned wickedly, "Wanna join me?"

"Hnnnnngh," Natsu whined, his eyes shuttering shut at the brushing kiss. While his hand rose to loop around her wrist, the rest of him didn't budge.

"Five more minutes," He mumbled childishly, twisting around in the sheets to shift onto his back.

"Natsu," Lucy huffed when his grip tightened on her, his expression growing lax and drowsy again.

She shrieked when suddenly a pillow was flung at her side from Natsu. One green eye was cracked open with a mischievous glint as his sneak attack took her by surprise. It caused her to flop forward back onto the bed.

Natsu's arms wrapped around her in a flash, capturing her against his chest and a smug smile on his face. Victory painting his smile, he settled down onto the mattress with his trapped prize.

But of course Lucy wasn't going to go down without a fight. Natsu thought he had won, and she had to admit he was pretty sneaky with his pillow attack. What he didn't know was that she had some tricks of her own.

Her leg slid between his, his pink brow twitching just barely in acknowledgement that he was aware she was doing something.

Too bad it would be too late before he figured out what.

Lucy pushed up with her hips and rolled herself upright on top of him, using her momentum, and Natsu's stubborn refusal to let her go to her advantage.

They rolled over once, twice,-

\- and right off the side of the bed.

Natsu made a strangled noise of protest and even Lucy shrieked in surprise at the suddenness of the stable mattress disappearing underneath them.

"Cheater," Natsu groaned from where he was underneath Lucy, completely buried in blankets.

"Shower now?" She asked hopefully.

"I guess."

Shaking loose a laugh as Lucy managed to climb up off him, Natsu's sleepy gaze couldn't help but travel appreciatively over her. She was sliding off him, her cheeks rosy with embarrassment and groping blindly for her nightie.

Good luck, Natsu grinned as he watched her finally give up the searched after a few seconds of pulling aside the covers.

His heart felt so warm and happy, body lingering with the effects of Lucy's touch. Natsu wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms back around her, dip his nose into the base of her head and sigh.

Tempted though he was to snag her and drag her back into bed with him, he reluctantly got up after her. Eyes locked on her retreating back, Lucy glanced at him over her shoulder and hurried into the bathroom.

It seemed now that morning dawned, she had rediscovered her shyness. Even if he was about to shower with her. Lucy was a confusing creature to be certain.

Natsu laughed and rolled forward on the balls of his feet.

It was strange, ever since meeting Lucy, Natsu had never felt more at peace. Not in a very long time. Before Motherglare had taken control of his old nest and pushed him out.

His hand rubbed at the thick scar across his neck, where she had almost taken his head clear off.

The memory surprisingly didn't cause the old scar to ache, and Natsu wondered if perhaps that childhood fear he had always held for the dragoness was finally abating.

While in his vulnerable human form, he could never entirely forget the sharpness of her claws or the viciousness from her tongue.

But now it didn't sting as badly anymore.

"Natsu?" Lucy's voice floated out the bathroom, beckoning him to join her.

"Coming," He laughed, a smile widening across his face and a hurry to his step.

He was interested in seeing what bathing with Lucy might be like.

It turned out the shower was just as eventful as waking up turned out to be. Natsu and Lucy grumbled over different degrees in temperature, and Natsu was convinced Lucy was trying to boil herself.

Being a fire dragon, he really had no idea of what would be too hot to a normal person.

Eventually they managed to come to an agreement in the tight space, before washing up and drying off. Soon they got dressed and headed outside to look at all the stalls getting set up for the first day of the festival.

Lucy grinned as she looked around eagerly. The festival would run for four days, but she and Natsu only had to work the last one as it was the big finale and they were to help provide both security in case some of the drunker people got too rowdy, and magical entertainment.

She doubted the officials were expecting any real problems, but it paid to be cautious, and most folks weren't inclined to tangle with a wizard. Especially one from Fairy Tail.

She blinked a little as she thought about that for a moment and shot Natsu a wry glance, "So what do you think the odds are everyone else will join our job too?" She smirked, tangling her hand in his and guiding him towards some truly amazing breakfast smells.

After all their energetic playing she was absolutely ravenous, and suspected Natsu could eat the equivalent of two or three cows.

"That's a sucker bet Luce." He smirked in reply, but the idea didn't bother him. They'd gotten a big reward for their last job, and he knew Wendy wasn't hurting either, so he didn't mind too much.

He glanced at her and felt his heart melt with emotions that were entirely gooey, but he wasn't sure how to name.

She really was something amazing. The greatest treasure he'd ever found actually. Like a jewel so brilliant that it makes all the other jewels around it gleam that much more just by its reflection.

How could he have ever wanted to snuff out that radiance?

He couldn't remember anymore, and resolved that he would do his very best to protect his most precious treasure no matter what.

Though... he was kind of curious about what this development meant to her. He'd been too young to know the human version of this kind of thing when he was wholly human, and he'd learned the hard way that the dragon and demon versions could be radically different.

"Um... Lucy..." He hesitated a little, shy about voicing such a question, but not sure if there was a better way to do it than just ask, "Last night... what does that mean now?"

To say Lucy was surprised he brought it up was an understatement. There was a certain kind of unsteadiness to the way he was looking at her, as if he were wondering if things were going to change.

Natsu was a creature of habit unlike any Lucy ever met before. He had a tendency to get grumpy and sulk when something radically changed around them. Like the time they had accidentally blown out one side of the guild so a large chunk of it had to be remodeled.

He warmed up quickly to the pool it generated though.

The thought lingered in her mind that perhaps this would be too much of a change for him to handle at once. It was also true she did not want to rush him into anything either.

So she took his hand in hers and shook her head, "It's whatever you want it to be Natsu."

The response was steady despite how rapidly Lucy's heart pounded in her chest.

He glanced at her, and Lucy knew she did not miss the dusting of red across his cheeks or the way the back of his ears pinkened. Natsu was so bold about most things, but this made him almost shy.

It was cute.

"I for one enjoyed it," Lucy admitted to him, sensing it was something perhaps he needed to hear, "Whatever this is, I don't see a reason to define it. Whatever we are, works. And I wouldn't change anything about this, or you."

Natsu stared at her for a moment and then, slowly, a wide grin curled around his face as something tense within him relaxed. He liked that answer. He liked it quite a bit.

Nothing had to change. They were just as they'd always been with a little more thrown in. He could do that.

"I wouldn't change anything either." He replied cheerfully, gently squeezing her hand. This certainly felt a lot better than the formal stuff he'd heard about with humans. The dragon version wasn't even worth mentioning. It gave him hives just thinking about all the rules and proper behavior and everything.

This relaxed idea suited him just fine.

Lucy grinned back at him, pleased to see him relaxing and so happy with her answer, "Good." She replied and tugged at his hand, "Now c'mon! I'm starving!"

Natsu scoffed as he let her lead him towards a series of food stalls, "You? You eat like a bird! There's no way you can ever starve!"

"I do not eat like a bird! You're the one who eats enough to feed an army!"

"Hey! It's not my fault I have a dragon's appetite!"

Neither half of the bickering couple noticed the wide eyed white haired woman behind them as she watched them with open shock, a touch of fear, and rising hope at the potential opportunity.

She had to tell Sting and Rogue about this!

Yukino ran back the way she came before she had stumbled upon the two, careful to make sure that neither half of the very odd pair had actually seen her. It absolutely would not do for them to be discovered on any terms but their own. She'd learned that from harsh experience.

However, it looked like the rumors they'd heard about End were, in fact, true. He really was bound to a human form. Which meant the blond with him had most likely been Lucy. The young celestial wizard her spirits had been talking about.

And the one who had bound End.

The very idea an untrained wizard could do such a thing was insane, but she'd seen the evidence with her own eyes. End belonged to the woman, and he appeared to be enjoying it if their banter was anything to go by.

It made her wonder if perhaps there was more to the binding than simple magic. After all, the rumors and stories she'd heard about End had never indicated the dragon ever had a feeling that wasn't cruel or malicious.

After all, no dragons had dared to fly wing or set foot in his territory in more years than could be counted. It was only through their unfortunate run-in with End's old nest that they were here, and they'd been wary and jumpy the entire time. She was certain neither her husband nor her brother-in-law would be pleased with this development. But what else were they to do? If she'd read the signs correctly, this might be an unprecedented opportunity dropped into their laps.

"Sting! Rogue!" She called as she neared, out of breath and flushed from how quickly she had made it back to where she left the two dragons.

The two men were sitting on the edge of a partially broken rock wall, the blond sprawled over the ledge on his back, while the other brooded quietly nearby. Both looked up alertly as she rushed over, without the food she'd promised to get.

"What is it Yukino?" Rogue asked, his shoulders tight with worry at what could've possibly caused such a reaction in his sister. He did not like being here, and any deviation from their plans worried him.

"Rogue," She panted, gasping out for air and setting her hands on her knees, "You'd never guess who I saw - or who was with him!"

Rogue and Sting both tensed immediately and the blond frowned as he rolled upright so fast Yukino almost missed it.

"Who?" Sting growled, his attention now, and worried fear evident on his face. At least to her and Rogue.

She bit her lip, hesitating on telling them. Now that her excitement had worn off, she was almost afraid they might pack up and leave without even approaching the other dragon.

They were cautious after all. Nestless dragons who weren't drakes could often get into more trouble than was worth. They had learned to be careful over the years.

"End is here," She breathed, her fingers curling up under her chin, "I didn't recognize him at first - he's in a human form like the rumors said!"

"End is _here_?" Rogue said tightly, alarm flashing over his face. He turned towards Sting, "We need to leave."

Sting, however, frowned, "Yuki... you said someone was with him. Who was it?"

Rogue stared at his brother incredulously, "You can't be seriously considering approaching him?" He yelped.

Sting's frown grew, "Maybe." He admitted, "The rumors have also said that he's allowed Black Steel Gajeel into his territory, and has become friends with his old enemies. If that's the case then there might be a slim chance he'll allow us a corner to live in as long as we defend the territory."

"Sting.. End is dangerous!" Rouge tried to reason, "Why do you want to take such a risk?"

Sting stood up and wrapped his arms around Yukino, "Because it won't always be just the three of us." He replied quietly, "One day you'll find someone too, or Yuki will get pregnant." He shook his head, and smiled lovingly down at her, "I don't want any hatchlings born in our little nest to have to fear for their lives all of their lives. Not if there's a way around it."

Yukino smiled up at her husband, "Do you want me to sound things out?" She asked, more than willing, and able, to do the legwork where they would potentially have problems.

However, Sting shook his head, "It would be better if we went with you. Just in case it goes wrong we'll be better equipped to get you out since we can transform."

He glanced at his brother, "What do you say Rogue?"

Rogue sighed, "I think you're insane." He growled flatly, "We should leave now before he finds out we're here."

In the distance, Natsu sneezed into a spool of cotton candy.

"Ew Natsu that's gross!"

"Eh, it's still good."

Yukino set her hands on her waist and shook her head at the two dragons who were giving one another the stink eye over Sting's decision.

"A woman was with him. I think she's the one who is rumored to have bound End," Yukino set a hand on her hip where a jingle of keys rang at her side, "If she's a celestial wizard like we've been lead to believe, then it's possible we could have something to offer End in exchange."

Both dragons stared at her blankly and she shook her head with a sigh, "She hasn't had a lot of time to master celestial summoning, and I could offer to help teach her."

Sting snapped his fingers and glanced over at Rogue with a grin, "See? Look, it's a smart plan. Very smart!"

Rogue rolled his eyes and grabbed his brother's cheeks, tugging them apart, "That only works if End actually cares about her! Which he probably doesn't because she bound him to her by force!"

Sting snarled and yanked on Rogue's bangs, the two of them squabbling like a pair of children.

Yukino sighed and waited for them to take a breath between their snarling to catch their attention

"I don't know, they looked very affectionate with one another," Yukino smiled, "They were even holding hands!"

That froze the pair as they looked at her in surprise, "Really?" Sting mumbled around Rogue's fingers and snapped at them irritably for being in his way, which resulted in Rogue swatting at his own hand as they, momentarily, straightened up.

"Yes, really." Yukino replied, torn between amusement and exasperation at their antics, "They seemed quite friendly really. Which is something you couldn't say about End normally."

Rogue sighed, aware that he was being outnumbered here, "I still think this is a stupid idea." He growled at Sting, "You know how dangerous it is to cross even an ally's territory, but this is End! The most powerful drake to ever live! If he decides he doesn't like us there's nothing to stop him from roasting us!"

"If he's truly bound then he won't be able to without permission anyway." Yukino pointed out reasonably, "And the rumors I've heard about her from my spirits say she won't let that happen. If we were ever going to take this chance it's now."

That wasn't strictly true, but the rumors she'd heard from Libra and Pisces were favorable enough she was willing to take the chance.

Rogue sighed again, "Fine." He growled, "But when this goes sour don't say I didn't tell you so."

Sting grinned triumphantly and curled his arm around Yukino, "Lead the way Yuki!" He beamed at her.

Yukino just smiled at him and began heading back towards the festival. This time with a pair of dragons in tow.

But as she returned with her companions in tow, a cloaked figure on the opposite end of the fairgrounds unobtrusively slipped away from the festivities. One who had seen precisely the same thing Yukino had.

He raced away, body hidden from view aside from the occasional glitter of something shining just under his hood. The man moved with inhuman speed, legs eating up the ground as if he had wings. He tore through the countryside and made it to the edge of the forest in a matter of minutes.

Not even breaking pace, he plowed through the heavily wooded area. His form shifted and changed, the cloak ripping off behind the figure as he began to swell in size.

Large wings burst open, the tips catching on branches. However these were not the fragile wings of a bird, or even the gossamer membrane of a bat. No, these were thick and leathery, strong enough to snap wood without flinching.

Springing forward the instant the forest ended, he vaulted his body over a wide running river and to the other side where others of his kind were gathered.

The dragons from the badlands all stood there waiting.

Among them stood Motherglare, her cruel eyes dark with deadly intent, "Did you find anything out?"

The scout flashed a smile that split his face in two. His teeth, razor sharp and glistening in the bright sun gleamed across the scales of gathered dragons.

It was difficult to make out what he growled through the gnash of teeth and the bloom of smoke from his nostrils. But the words made themselves known.

"End is there with the girl and the rest of those pathetic worms," he laughed, "But I saw no signs of a nest. Only the fool falling in love with the human wench that bound him."

Motherglare laughed harshly at the report, "Does he now?" She grinned darkly, "Well then, we shall have to be sure and take her alive before we crush End. Perhaps we can have some sport of her before we finish her off while he watches helplessly."

The dragons around her all roared their laughter and approval as their queen stood and shook out her wings, "Let us waste no more time!" She roared, "End's territory is within sight, and by dusk it will be _**OURS**_!"

There was an answering roar as the nest took flight and winged their way toward the border that they no longer believed could hold them back.

* * *

 _ **Whoooooa, well. That was a lot of screaming now wasn't it last chapter? Sorry guys, no review responses this time because... I sorta don't know how to respond to them?  
**_

 _ **Aside from making this face.**_

 _ **:'3**_

 _ **...**_

 _ **SO THANKS FOR REVIEWING from the bottom of my heart! And here is your VERY well deserved sneak peek of the next chapter!**_

* * *

 _She was startled when he growled, lowly and menacingly, but not at her. In fact, he wasn't even looking at her. She peered around him to see what could be causing such a reaction and found herself staring at a trio of very nervous looking people._

 _"Um...hi?"_

 _Natsu cracked his knuckles, his expression shadowing rapidly, "First Gajeel, now you two? And you have the guts to walk up to me in your human forms in broad daylight. I'll have to pummel that metal head for not doing a better job at keeping an eye on the border."_

 _A challenging grin began to spread across his cheeks, his eyes glittering like black coals, "I'm going to enjoy this." He seemed to be looking right past the woman that was with them, seeing only the two men that were with her._


	39. Watership Down

**_Act 3_**

* * *

 ** _39_**

 ** _Watership Down_**

 _"He fought because he actually felt safer fighting than running."_

 _―_ Richard Adams **, _Watership Down_**

* * *

Lucy watched with some exasperation as Natsu ground his forehead into the glass of a prize stand. His eyes were flaming with competitive spirit and Lucy thought she was going to have to forcibly drag him away from the poor teddy bears before he accidentally set the whole stall ablaze.

"Dirty, cheating- !" Natsu swore, lunging towards the game which had bested him five times already. Lucy just barely managed to catch him by the back of his shirt before he could dive in for a sixth round of punishment.

"Oh give it a rest already Natsu," Lucy sighed, managing to drag him back a single step. Natsu stubbornly pushed forward, his jaw tight and fingers reaching.

"No!" He said childishly, his cheeks puffing out and lips pulling down into a snarling frown, "I won't back down! It's a matter of pride!"

"It's a teddy bear!"

"That's what it wants you to think, but don't think I can't see its beady eyes taunting me," Natsu growled back.

The festival was now in full swing and the various guild members had all separated in the hopes of finding something exciting.

Natsu had seen the teddy bear and came up with the brilliant idea of winning one for Wendy as a way to commemorate their first job together. And as greedy as dragons were, he wasn't willing to let it go.

Of course he had to physically restrain himself from just smashing the case and grabbing the damn bear - with as much jewel as he had spent on this con man's game, he could have just bought the stupid thing.

Lucy led Natsu away, forcibly. That didn't stop him from glaring over his shoulder at the man with enough intensity to cause the seat of his pants to start smoking.

No matter how many times Lucy tried to cram manners and behavioral studies into his head, Natsu still got a rather profound sense of pleasure from the occasional prank.

"Put it out," Lucy said without even looking around at him, causing Natsu's jaw to drop.

"W-what?"

"I smell smoke," Lucy said simply.

Oh.

Guilty, Natsu cut off his magic so the man's pants wouldn't smolder any longer. He grumbled sourly under his breath, but relaxed as Lucy's hand made its way into his own, her slim fingers fitting between his. Natsu's mood lightened at once, as did the remaining wisps of smoke.

"So what do you want to do next?" Lucy asked him.

"I dunno. It's your turn to pick!" Natsu grinned broadly, not really caring as long as he got to spend it with Lucy.

Lucy hummed for a moment and then brightened, "Oh I know! What if we take a look at some of the arts and crafts on display?" She smiled, "Maybe we can find a souvenir for Wendy and then try out some of the rides?"

It had actually amazed her when she'd realized that the 'festival' was basically turning into something that reminded her a lot of the old county fairs. Food, arts, crafts, games, and contests were the order of the day along with rides. Magic powered roller coasters and other things.

She froze as she suddenly realized one great glaring problem with that plan, "Wait..."

"Yeah! That sounds great! C'mon Lucy!" Natsu crowed excitedly, already diverted from his contest with the teddy bear.

"No wait! We should revise this!" Lucy yelped, alarmed by his sudden enthusiasm, but it was too late to stop him as he tugged her along eagerly. At least he was heading for the arts and crafts section first. Thank god. Maybe while they were looking she'd get a second to mention why riding rides was such a bad idea for him.

Maybe he'd prefer a eating contest instead?

Yeah. That should divert him.

Lucy didn't expect him to suddenly come to a screeching halt, making her crash into him, "Hey! What's the idea?" She huffed. As much as she enjoyed his muscles they were hard as rock and not the most pleasant thing to crash into.

She was startled when he growled, lowly and menacingly, but not at her. In fact, he wasn't even looking at her. She peered around him to see what could be causing such a reaction and found herself staring at a trio of very nervous looking people.

"Um...hi?"

Natsu cracked his knuckles, his expression shadowing rapidly, "First Gajeel, now you two? And you have the guts to walk up to me in your human forms in broad daylight. I'll have to pummel that metal head for not doing a better job at keeping an eye on the border."

A challenging grin began to spread across his cheeks, his eyes glittering like black coals, "I'm going to enjoy this." He seemed to be looking right past the woman that was with them, seeing only the two men that were with her.

She asserted herself a moment later to slow Natsu, stepping in front of them and cutting off his line of sight from the two.

"Wait, please - just hear us out before you attack," The woman pleaded, her eyes flashing over to Lucy for a hesitant moment before rising back to Natsu's fierce glare.

"And why should I?" He bared his fangs, looking at the two dragons behind her. They swiftly moved up in unison to protect the human that was with them, "You two know better than to toe the boundary of my territory, much less step foot in it."

It was frustrating for Natsu to have this keep happening to him. He had been out of his dragon form far too long if not one but two dragons were bold enough to walk up to him in the middle of the day.

Gajeel would be just as furious as him, since as they were nestmates, it meant they shared territory. The iron dragon took a weekly visit up to the northern section to do his rounds and ensure everything was fine there.

Not that Natsu actually wanted Gajeel's frozen tundra he called a home, but he still very well understood the practice of keeping one's territory safe.

It was still _**their**_ territory, and other dragons were not permitted. Natsu had every right to kill them. Although they could easily transform and take off, he sensed that much - they were just lucky they hadn't run into Gajeel.

"Hold on a second." Lucy spoke up moving up beside Natsu and dropping a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Let's at least hear them out." She met his eyes firmly, "If everyone knows the rules of your territory then it's a safe bet they know Gajeel is around too. And if they know that then they know they know that not even their dragon forms will help them if he catches sight of them." She glanced at the pair of dragons pointedly.

She turned her attention back to Natsu, "So, knowing that... they're either idiots or they were looking for you specifically despite the consequences. And since she," She gestured to Yukino, "Is asking us to hear them out I think something serious brought them here."

She smiled at him, "So if they're willing to risk it shouldn't we find out why they'd be willing to?"

Natsu wanted to growl that no he really did not give a fat damn about why they'd decided to invade his territory to see him. As far as he was concerned they were trespassers and that was where the story ended.

But Lucy's appeal and earnest smile had him sighing and growling mutinously as he backed down, "Fine." He grumbled, "But I'm roasting them if it's not a good reason."

Lucy nodded and turned her attention to the white haired woman and the two with her, "Okay."

Sting moved up to curl his arm around Yukino, "This was my idea." He explained, accepting full responsibility for it, "Rogue and I are dragon adopted humans." His lips twisted bitterly, "It's a story I'm sure you're familiar with by now. We were adopted by Weisslogia and Skiadrum, former nestmates of Igneel, but were eventually pushed from the nest before he adopted you."

He glanced at Natsu, "We tried to carve out a territory for ourselves when that happened, but neither Rogue nor I are drakes. We couldn't keep it. We've been wandering ever since."

He looked back at Lucy evenly, "That would've been fine except I met Yukino." He flashed her a loving smile, "And after a while we got married."

"I don't mind the wanderer's life." Yukino spoke up, "But one of these days we'll start a family, and we don't want our children to grow up in fear." She hesitated a little, "We'd heard rumors that End might have started a nest with Black Steel Gajeel, and were hoping that he might be open to adding more to it. Or, failing that, perhaps he would allow us to live peacefully in a small corner of his territory and help protect it."

Sting smiled sadly at his wife, "Rogue and I are powerful, and Yuki is a strong celestial wizard, but even together we're not strong enough to beat you in a challenge. If you say no we'll leave peacefully and never come back."

Natsu eyed the twin dragons. He could probably handle them both together as they were. Still, if they transformed it could be a tricky battle for him. He still couldn't control his dragon form anymore, but they didn't necessarily know that. Hell, Cobra had been a tough battle just by the nature of his magic and his stupid pointy ears...

They wanted to join his nest? Suspicion flared within him immediately and he let loose a warning growl, but it was quickly smothered by Lucy's hand on his arm.

 _Don't act rashly_ the touch told him, so Natsu swallowed back his angry growl and the thought of sharing territory with these strangers.

They were still a small nest. It was true. And other nests often filled up entire mountainsides. Natsu could see the benefit of letting two strong dragons in...

But his nest was small for a reason. Natsu liked it like that. Him, Gajeel, Wendy, Lucy and Levy.

Although if he included all of Fairy Tail in that number...

Perhaps it wasn't so small after all.

"Why should I trust you?" He asked, tilting his head at them and a challenging smile working over his face. Arms folded over his chest, "What do you have besides yourselves and the thin weight of your word, to offer me?"

Yukino stepped forward a little, her expression firm, "I believe you're the one known as Lucy?" She asked the blond, "The celestial wizard that everyone's been talking about?"

Lucy blinked a little, startled by the change of topic, and felt herself tense a little, "I am." She agreed warily, flashbacks to people trying to get their hands on her coming to the fore.

Yukino caught the subtle motion and smiled, "Don't worry. I'm not after you or anything like that. As Sting said, I'm also a celestial wizard, and though I'm know you've had some training I've been practicing for a long time now. I'd be happy to teach you."

Lucy stared at her, completely taken aback by the offer. Leo was a good teacher, but he could only be outside the gate for a relatively limited amount of time, so her lessons tended to be sporadic. If Yukino was offering it would mean she could have regular instruction instead of fumbling by on the odd lesson and what she cobbled together on her own.

Still... she was wary.

She'd heard warning after warning about celestial wizards abusing their spirits. She didn't want to learn from someone like that.

"I have just one question for you." She replied, startling Yukino a little, "What are your spirits to you?"

Yukino blushed a bit, "Ah well, you might think this is silly, but I care greatly for my spirits. Some were there for me when no one else was." She glanced at Sting affectionately, "The others mean just as much because they were gifts from my two dear dragons."

Lucy smiled at that, pleased by the answer, "I don't think that's silly at all." She replied, "Most of my spirits were also given to me by friends, or sought me out on their own. So I understand exactly what you mean."

She glanced at Natsu, "What do you think?"

His eyes narrowed, not looking all too happy about the direction things were turning. It was a pretty dirty trick to use Lucy as a reason to let them in...

But damn if it wasn't a good one.

"Temporary stay," Natsu finally growled after a few distrustful seconds.

"You got that?" He said loudly, jabbing his finger in their direction, " _Temporary!_ You two gotta prove you're not up to no good before we let you stick around! And it's gotta go through all three dragons of us first!"

Lucy smiled at Natsu's stringent rules, but it was so much better now than it had in the past. Before he wouldn't have cared. Under any circumstance he would have turned them away no matter their reasons, their offers, or pleas.

And Lucy thought Natsu more than likely would have taken Yukino's keys from her by force if he wanted it bad enough.

But it was progress. Definite progress, and by the shocked look on Sting and Rogue's face, it was clear they were stunned by that as well.

"Really?" Sting gaped at him, his cheeks flushing and a light seeming to shine from him, "Yeah! We got it!"

Lucy relaxed a little at that and stepped forward to hold out her hand to Yukino, "Now that the drama's over..." She grinned, "Hi. I'm Lucy. It's nice to meet you."

Yukino giggled a little and grasped her hand, "I'm Yukino. The pleasure is mine. Thank you so much for speaking up on our behalf."

Lucy shook her head, "Don't worry about it." She grinned eagerly, "So can I ask which spirits you have? I keep pestering Leo and Grandpa Crux for information, but there's only so much they can tell me."

Yukino opened her mouth to respond when they were interrupted by a ball of blue hair rushing up to them as fast as she could move, and looking extremely upset.

"Natsu!" Wendy cried fearfully, "Dragons have crossed into your territory!"

Natsu blinked and then rubbed her head soothingly, "Relax Wendy." He smiled reassuringly, "It was just those two." He jerked his thumb at Sting and Rogue, "They want to join the nest so I'm letting them stay temporarily to see if they're worth it."

Wendy glanced over at the other two dragons, who both managed to come out of their shock at the presence of the hatchling enough to wave at her, but she shook her head frantically.

"No!" She exclaimed, "It's not them! I saw them flying in! There are at least five of them, maybe more! I saw them in the distance over the fields! The one leading was this great big metal dragoness!"

Natsu and Lucy both froze at that, "Wendy..." She asked slowly, "Were they coming from the badlands?"

Wendy hesitated uncertainly, "I'm not positive, but I think so. The metal dragoness has weird bumps on her hide though."

Lucy's heart stopped at the description, "No... Motherglare?" She looked at Natsu worriedly. They'd barely survived an encounter with Motherglare before. And only because Gajeel had helped them out.

"Who's Motherglare?" Sting asked in confusion.

"She's the dragon that's in charge of Natsu's old nest now," Lucy explained, "And we've got a bad history with her."

 _ **"She's dead is what she is!"**_ Natsu roared furiously, fire dripping from his mouth as his rage mounted, _**"I'm going to melt her stupid scales off and pour them down her throat!"**_

"We have to protect the people here before you can!" Lucy countered sharply and looked at Wendy, "Go find Gajeel and the rest of the guild and let them know what's happened. Tell them we need Gajeel on the battlefield right away, and have the others evacuate the area and join us."

She met Natsu's fiery gaze when he whipped around to stare at her, "We need all the help we can get if you're going to take them down Natsu." She said tensely, "Even if we can't kill them we can help distract them long enough for you to do the job!"

Natsu grit his teeth, not at all happy over the idea of Lucy and the rest of Fairy Tail getting involved in a dragon fight. That was bound to just create casualties if they weren't careful.

He contemplated another way to get around this, but he couldn't come up with another reason. Eyes flashing over to Sting and Rogue, he gave them a narrow eyed glare. Natsu's natural suspicions thought it was shady how Motherglare had appeared right after they were introduced to these new dragons.

But he didn't have the luxury of suspicion now.

"Alright fine! You say your parents knew my old man, well it's time to put that to the test," Natsu growled and cracked his knuckles. He jumped up onto the balls of his feet, "You won't get a better opportunity than now to prove it."

Natsu knew he could fight Motherglare, but in the past there was an instinctual fear he had for the dragoness. But strangely enough now, it was replaced by the purest of rage. He didn't know why, but he felt almost as if all the pain from his past had slowly been worked away. Like he could see her in his human form and not be crippled by the memories of her pushing him out of his family.

Perhaps it was because he had a new nest.

His eyes skittered over to Lucy before pulling up.

"What's it gonna be, fight now or bow out later?" He growled at them.

Sting and Rogue exchanged a look and nodded.

"We'll fight," Rogue answered.

Sting moved to Yukino, "Why don't you-"

She shook her head with a firm set of her jaw, refusing to listen to the rest of his words, which would undoubtedly be to tell her to go run and hide.

"I'll fight with Lucy," Yukino vowed and reached for her keys, "I'm not leaving."

Sting knew better than to argue with her when she used that tone so he nodded and quickly kissed her, "Be careful anyway." He rumbled and pulled back to join his twin and Natsu.

Further away they heard a bellow of outrage and a few moments later metal wings glinted in the sunlight as their owner flapped over the crowd to come join them with a girl tucked under each arm.

"Put me down Gajeel!" Levy huffed, squirming a bit in his grasp, "We've got work to do!"

Gajeel carefully set Levy and Wendy down, not caring what his scaled state looked like to the onlookers, "The hell is goin' on Salamander?" He growled.

"We're going to war." Natsu growled darkly, "Mother Glare wants a rematch and we're going to give it to her. And all her nestmates dumb enough to invade."

Gajeel snorted at that and glanced at the other pair of dragons, "I'm assumin' there's a reason Salamander's left you two alive, but I ain't got time to hear it now."

"We'll explain everything later." Rogue growled, "For now, let's deal with the problem at hand!"

He glanced at Sting and in moments patches of scales were forming as their wings unfurled from their backs while Pantherlily flew over to Natsu, "I'm not a dragon, but I can help you fly." The Exceed growled and slid his paws into place to carry Natsu into the fray.

"Thanks Lily!" Natsu looked over his shoulder at the Exceed holding him. The rumbling in the distance told him the dragons were getting closer, and even now his sharp eyes could pick out the snarling faces of the dragons approaching them rapidly.

Natsu slid his hand in Lucy's, his eyes meeting hers. He swallowed tightly and felt every ounce of her burning stare pouring into him. A smile worked over his face as she silently told him _be careful._

"See ya soon Luce?" He asked.

 _You too_ he quietly urged.

"Yeah," She breathed in response, and Natsu released her hand. Nodding up at Lily, he and the rest of the dragons swiftly departed.

If it wasn't one thing, it was another.

He made a mental note to keep an eye on their two new allies. Hope that what they said was true kept him from doing anything against them, but that was all.

When had he gotten so soft, to fight alongside complete strangers and trust they wouldn't betray him? Natsu smothered a snort and an eye roll as he realized if he said such a thing in front of Lucy, she would probably chide him for being so rude. Sometimes it was okay to trust people.

Well, he didn't have a choice here.

He just hoped Lucy stayed safe.

Lucy watched anxiously as Natsu and the other dragons flew off. Her partner was screaming profanities at the top of his lungs, but she was still nervous. This wasn't an ordinary fight he was getting into. This was an all out war. If Motherglare won she would not stop until she'd hunted them all down, and destroyed them. And she didn't even want to think about what would happen to the rest of the people living in Natsu's territory.

However bad things had been when Natsu was at his worst, she had a suspicion Motherglare and her nest would be _far_ worse.

"Don't worry Lucy!" Wendy exclaimed with cheerful confidence and a smile, "Natsu and Gajeel are drakes. They're much stronger than regular dragons. Even dragons like Motherglare."

"But there are more than four invading..." Lucy protested and jumped a little when she felt a hand on her arm. She looked over and found Levy watching her with the same worry, but firm determination overshadowing it.

"That's why we're here Lu." She said firmly, "We'll make sure that those guys know why Natsu never tangled with all of us at once!"

Lucy took a breath and nodded, a frown of determination crossing her own face, "Right. Let's go then."

Levy nodded, "We should meet up with Erza and Jellal. They're the ones coordinating the evacuation."

Lucy nodded and glanced at Yukino. The white haired woman didn't say anything, but she nodded back and fell into step alongside them as they raced to find the rest of Fairy Tail.

Dragons had the ability to change shape at will, but Natsu didn't seem to have control over it anymore. So Lucy was understandably worried when he was flying into battle with nothing more than his fists and Lily serving as a pair of makeshift wings.

"Where's Happy!" Lucy suddenly asked, turning towards Wendy. The young dragonslayer had been watching over the little exceed for the past couple of days for them, and she was concerned he was getting caught up in the battle. Jobs were one thing for a kitten, all out war was another.

"Happy and Carla are by the guild! Freed set up a protective barrier for them and the other kids right before we left," Wendy explained, her eyes wide.

"And why didn't you go into the barrier?" Lucy asked Wendy, who chewed her bottom lip. She mumbled something under her breath, but Lucy got the idea.

She wanted to protect her guild, to fight and become strong alongside her nest.

Even though she was still too young to transform, Wendy had the unique abilities of a sky dragon. And Lucy understood that Wendy would want to use those magical skills to assist her brothers.

"You're such a good girl Wendy," Lucy smiled, taking the girl's hand in her own and giving it a tight squeeze. Wendy's cheeks went red with pleasure over the praise, but she gave a determined nod in response to Lucy.

The women all ran to join the rest of the guild, all save Yukino who hesitated when she caught sight of a strange cloaked figure stalking behind them. Frowning, her memory tickled. Had she seen that man before?

Perhaps earlier, weaving in and out the festival crowds?

She wasn't sure. She hadn't really paid close attention to her surroundings earlier. She'd thought this was a simple country fair. Further into Natsu's territory than they'd wanted to go, but it had been the best option for anonymously resupplying before moving on. And then there had been her discovery.

However, now it was beginning to bother her.

She wasn't sure what it was, maybe Sting's caution was rubbing off on her more than she'd realized, but there was something distinctly off about their shadow.

He didn't move the way the other fair-goers were. Even when panicked. He moved like a predator. And that made her extremely nervous. Especially as he was closing in.

Her frown deepened as her instincts went off. Whatever this man was intending she didn't like it.

She turned, preparing to run to Lucy's side and warn her, but before she could get so much as a half a step the man, who had still been some distance back, was suddenly at her side.

"Disgusting." The man growled, looking down his nose at her even as he punched her firmly in the stomach knocking the wind out of her, "No human whore should bear the scent of dragon."

"You're lucky I don't have time to kill you the way you deserve." He spat, revealing a row of sharp teeth Yukino immediately recognized. Her eyes widened in horror as she suddenly realized who and what the man had to be.

However, when he let her go all she could do was drop to the ground coughing and wheezing as she tried to catch her breath.

She was helpless to do anything but watch as Lucy turned to look at her in concern while the man advanced, appearing to be part of the crowd around them.

"Yukino?" Lucy called, moving towards her, "Are you okay?"

"R-r..." She wheezed before another cough interrupted her attempt, and just like that it was too late.

All of a sudden the man shaped dragon burst into a flurry of motion as he grabbed hold of Lucy and scales and wings erupted from him.

Lucy let out a shout of alarm, trying to drive back on her heel to put some distance between her and her mystery attacker. However, the man ripped Lucy into the air like a rag doll, causing her to scream in terror as her feet left the ground too suddenly for her to put up a defense.

"Lucy!" Levy shouted. Her hand lifted, finger tracing words through the air to try and retrieve her friend. Once that dragon fully transformed, there would be no saving her.

But she hesitated on the word to use, because anything she could think of ran the risk of hurting Lucy too.

Then, out of nowhere, a golden shimmer that caught her attention, and Levy almost reeled back in shock when she caught sight of a celestial spirit forming. The magic was so rare, Levy had believed Lucy to be the only practitioner left after Angel.

Yukino was struggling back to her feet, an arm wrapped around bruised lungs and ribs, but her attention was upwards onto the dragon, "Can you catch her?"

"We need something to catch Lucy and push that guy away!" Yukino stood by the spirit she summoned, a woman with two scales dangling by her hands.

Wendy balled her hands into tiny fists and growled up at the dragon taking the queen of their nest away. "Leave the dragon to me!"

Levy was hesitant about that, but she began to write words through the air to catch her friend.

"Libra!" Yukino commanded, "Get Lucy out of that creep's hands!"

This was sure to only be a temporary solution, and they would be hard pressed to outrun a dragon. Especially one targeting Lucy for whatever reason...

But until they got to the rest of Fairy Tail, this was their only solution.

"Roger," The spirit intoned waving her hands and applying crushing pressure to Lucy's weight.

Lucy let out a shriek as she suddenly became too heavy for the dragon to hold onto in his partial form, and she went plummeting to the ground. Another pulse of magic washed over her, and her weight shifted to light as a feather at the last moment when she landed on a cloud formed by Levy's magic.

In fact, she was so light, she almost blew away when Wendy opened her mouth and let loose a powerful roar. Clearly she had watched Natsu in action a few too many times as she blew the roof of a building clear off in her haste to nail Lucy's would-be attacker.

Luckily, Wendy's aim was exceptional despite the roof and it nailed the escaping dragon squarely in the back.

Of course, coming from Wendy that meant it did little more than blast away a few scales and piss him off. But that wasn't the only effect.

Not far away Natsu and Gajeel were busy intercepting Motherglare and her forces, and didn't see their sister's roar. Sting, however, did.

He caught a glimpse of the blast out of the corner of his eye, and his eyes narrowed at the sight of the half-transformed dragon _behind_ them twisting around in midair to deal with the source. A source that could only be the hatchling they'd met earlier.

"Brother!" He called, catching Rogue's attention.

It only took the dark dragon a moment to assess the situation, "Go! I'll stay here!"

Sting nodded as he wheeled around and headed for the other dragon as fast as he could move. He caught back up just as the other dragon was winding up for a returning shot and swiped his foreclaw into him.

There was a _very_ satisfying yelp of surprise as the enemy dragon was knocked out of the air and to the ground where Sting obligingly slammed his foot down on him.

"Going somewhere?" He rumbled.

"Half-breed!" The dragon beneath him snarled in disgust and his form began to billow out and swell, "I'm going to cut your claws from your body for even touching me!"

"Yeah yeah yeah, blah blah, dragon superiority, blah blah, insert witty quip here," Sting bent his body, shielding the women from the blows of the thrashing, transforming dragon.

A steely blue eye swept over to them, and where a disoriented Lucy was pushing herself to her feet. Growls tore through him as he saw how Yukino's arms were clutched around her chest, his nose brushing down to lightly nudge her.

"You okay?" He asked her softly.

"I'm fine," Yukino gasped, grateful beyond belief for Sting's interference. Against a dragon, there wasn't much just a few of them could do. Wendy, young as she was, had probably inflicted more damage to him than Libra.

"But they were after Lucy for some reason," She gasped, "I'm not sure why!"

Sting nodded, his attention returning back to the dragon who would be his opponent.

"Then lets find out shall we?" Sting growled and surged towards the other dragon, "Head back to the others! I'll keep this one busy!"

"Thanks Sting!" Lucy called gratefully as her equilibrium returned and tugged on Yukino's hand to get her moving.

Yukino started a little, but quickly got moving. They'd almost lost Lucy because she'd lagged, and she was determined not to let that happen again. She tried not to glance over her shoulder as the sound of enraged dragons roaring and snarling at each other erupted. She couldn't help it though when Sting's familiar roar burst out behind them.

Fortunately, her husband was proving that he _did_ have a brain between his ears as he efficiently herded the other dragon away from the populace and towards Rogue's waiting claws. That was a relief. By themselves they were powerful dragons, but together the brothers were nearly unstoppable.

She smiled a bit before turning her attention back to the job at hand.

"How far away are your guildmates?" She asked a little breathlessly, the ache in her abdomen starting to make itself known more pointedly.

"Not far now." Levy replied as they rounded a corner, "We're here!"

Yukino heaved a sigh of relief as they were quickly surrounded by the Fairy Tail members. Some were demanding to know what had happened and who the white dragon was. Some were asking if they were all right. It was a confusing roar of words that made little sense to her after so long living on the road and in the country with just Sting and Rogue.

It was honestly a little overwhelming, and didn't help her pain any.

A light touch made her look down and she blinked as she saw Wendy staring at her in concern, "You're hurt." The little dragon said, "Let me heal it for you."

"Oh no!" She protested, "You shouldn't waste your magic..." But it was too late as the girl's hands glowed and pressed against her belly taking away the pain.

"You helped save Lucy." Wendy replied solemnly, "She's not your queen, but you fought for her anyway." She smiled, "Only nest does that. And I help my nest."

Yukino smiled at Wendy fondly, pressing her palm around the back of the girl's head and hugging her gently.

"Thank you for helping Yukino," Lucy moved in closer, "That jerk would have definitely carried me off if you hadn't had Libra help like you did."

Yukino accepted the gratitude even if she didn't find it necessary.

It didn't take a lot for Yukino to figure out why Lucy was the subject of the dragon's targets. She looked up at the sky where she could see the dragons clawing at one another in the sky. Even End's smaller form was marked by jets of flame and wild acrobatics.

This was his old nest attacking. And if they had met the other dragons before, like Yukino suspected they had, it didn't take a genius to figure out the partnership between End and Lucy.

If they wanted to hurt him, the best way to do it would be to hurt _her_.

It was a conclusion Sting had come to as well the more he listened to the vile things the dragon he and Rogue were fighting vomited up. Honestly, the things coming out of this dragon's mouth made him very glad that his father and Skiadrum had gotten out early.

It hadn't been easy, but he was grateful all the same.

He glanced at his brother, and they shared a moment of perfect agreement as they nodded to each other before stepping up together as one.

"White drive." He intoned as Rogue growled out a matching, "Shadow drive."

Light and dark flared around them as they moved to meld their magics together with the ease of long practice.

Normally they would've held off on this until later in the battle, but this pathetic lizard was keeping them from helping End and Black Steel in his rabid need to go after their queen.

That was not going to happen on their watch.

"Holy Shadow Dragon's Flash Fang!" They roared in unison, unleashing the extremely destructive force of their opposed but matching elements.

The resulting explosion actually had the other dragon's pausing in their respective fights for a moment as they watched the display. Natsu gaped a little as three figures dropped from it. One, limp and bleeding all over as it crashed to the ground with a hard thump. The other two light and dark heads recognizable as Sting and Rogue. It seemed the force of the explosion had reverted all three back into smaller forms.

"Gajeel!" He shouted urgently, but the metal dragon was already winging an intercept, and chuckled as he caught them.

"You brats sure you ain't drakes?" The iron dragon rumbled with a smirk as Sting and Rogue caught their breath. That display had been _damned_ impressive, and he suddenly didn't mind the idea of them possibly joining their little nest nearly as much as before.

"Very sure." Sting chuckled as he climbed to his feet with the ease only a dragon would possess, "Thanks for the catch." He glanced at his brother and smirked, "You ready for round two?"

Rogue flashed a pointed grin in response and scales covered his body as wings erupted from his back, "Indeed."

Sting laughed as he called on his own wings and leapt back into the air. He glanced at the others and began expanding to his full size, effectively blocking the path of another dragon that had been trying to move around to get behind Natsu.

"Going somewhere?" He rumbled with a smirk, showing all of his many pointed teeth, "White Dragon Roar!"

Natsu shouted out his thanks and charged Motherglare with a roar. There was a deafening slam as the bodies of dragons impacted one another and tumbled into the meadow lands.

Fairy Tail was waiting there to unleash their particular brand of hell on the dragons that had dared to interrupt their vacation, and the moment the opportunity presented itself they didn't hesitate to spring into action.

Meanwhile, Natsu jettisoned himself and Lily forward, while Gajeel swung his heavily spiked tail into one of the smaller dragons. It would be a tight battle, but with Sting and Rogue on their side they stood a good chance, and Natsu couldn't help feeling a surge of pride at how strong his nest was.

More importantly, as he floated in front of Motherglare he felt the remnants of his years of isolation fall away. He was no longer haunted by his nestles existence. Because the fact of the matter was, he was no longer nestless. He had a family again. And suddenly being pushed from his old one didn't bother him. Why would it when his new one was so much superior?

He grinned wickedly as he remembered the way Lucy had talked about them building a superior nest. And the name she'd given them, but they hadn't really started using. Maybe now was a good time to start.

"Gajeel!" He called out to the iron dragon, swooping through the air, "I think it's about time we break in the new names Lucy gave us!"

"Gihi!" The dragon cackled, "I was thinkin' the same thing Salamander!"

"No time better than the present!" Natsu cackled after him, fire erupting from his feet as he slammed a fist against Motherglare's neck, watching with satisfaction as she shriekd in outrage and jerked bodily.

"You filthy little half-breed!" She snarled at him.

"Dragonslayer!" Natsu corrected her, a victorious smile breaking over his face, "Get it right you ugly slug!"

Lucy watched breathlessly as the dragonslayers earned their names. It was truly awe inspiring watching the titans clash even if her heart skipped in terror every time she caught a glimpse of Natsu's tiny form flitting around thanks to Pantherlily's help.

"Look alive Lucy!" Erza commanded, "We've got more incoming!"

Lucy pulled her eyes away from the sight in time to see more of those little metallic pods descend from Motherglare and scowled. As if they weren't already having a difficult time.

"Got it!" She called back and pulled out a key, "Open! Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

"You called princess?" Virgo asked with a slight bow.

"You bet I did!" Lucy replied and pointed to the incoming robots or whatever they were, "It's punishment time Virgo! Take them out!"

"Right away princess!" Virgo replied, a faint gleam of sadistic pleasure glinting in her eyes for a moment as she headed for the first of them.

"Let me help!" Yukino cried and slashed her own key, calling for Libra again, "Libra!" She commanded, gesturing to where Virgo was drilling holes and tearing constructs apart.

"Yes." The spirit agreed and leapt after her counterpart. Moments later scores of the things were flattened from where she'd raised the gravity.

"Thanks!" Lucy called over gratefully only to look up when the ground shook from the force of an explosion, and her eyes widened in shock as Motherglare fell from the sky in a roaring inferno.

She couldn't help but stare as Natsu landed in the flames, standing astride Motherglare as if she were some kind of trophy. His fists were curled at his sides and he breathed out heavily.

Lucy watched feathery wings open in the air around him. She knew they were caused by Lily, but from her angle she could not see his small body latched on Natsu's back.

But with his shirt in tatters, his scarf whipping around his neck, and fire engulfing his winged body, for the first time since she met him - she thought he looked a lot like the demon he claimed was part of his heritage.

It never came up before, but in that moment she could truly see it.

In her world, the old scriptures said devils were fallen angels, handsome and alluring to mortals.

Lucy could see why.

Though Natsu was a far cry from being evil these days despite his snarling at times. A fact she was extremely grateful for.

With Motherglare felled, the remaining dragons all began to think twice about their fights. One by one, they all began to back down, circling away and swiftly retreating.

Natsu threw his head back and let out a bellowing roar of victory, throwing his fists into the air. It was loud enough Lucy could feel it vibrate in her ribs.

"They did it," Lucy breathed, looking around herself happily.

Natsu's roar was quickly joined by the other dragons. Even Wendy, working overtime to heal injuries, paused to let out an answering triumphant roar of her own as the humans in the crowd cheered.

Lucy smiled broadly and began rushing towards Natsu, Yukino half a step behind her as she made for Sting, and laughed when he leapt down off Mother Glare's back to greet her.

"You did it!" She crowed and nearly tackled him in a hug. The moment his arms wrapped warmly around her she felt the knot of tension and worry in her finally unravel. He was alive and at least relatively unharmed.

That was more than good enough for her.

She squeezed him tightly, silently telling him how worried she'd been and how happy she was now. It was a squeeze he returned and when they pulled apart he was grinning proudly.

She couldn't blame him either. He'd beaten one of his childhood demons and defended their home.

"You two ain't bad in a fight." Gajeel rumbled to the twins while Natsu and Lucy clung to each other, having shifted down with them when Sting went to greet Yukino, "For not bein' drakes anyway."

"Gajeel!" Levy scolded as she and the rest of the guild joined them, "Would it kill you to be a little polite?"

"Maybe." The iron dragon smirked, enjoying the look on her face when he did.

"Hey! What's that even supposed to mean, huh?" Sting grouched. He yelped as he was dragged backwards by his ear, Rogue the guilty party.

"He means to say thanks," The dark dragon translated for his protesting brother.

He shifted nervously under Gajeel's steady stare, hoping the iron dragon was in as good a mood as he looked. His arm was slung over the shoulder of the petite looking human, but he looked absolutely at peace considering he had bitten a massive chunk out of one of the retreating dragons.

They all had their fair share of injuries, but Rogue was immensely impressed by the resilience shown by both of the Fairy Tail dragons.

"So, uh... does that mean we passed?" Rogue asked hesitantly.

Natsu shrugged dismissively, "Sure. Why not. You didn't mess up bad enough to kill us, so I guess I should be grateful."

Lucy rolled her eyes a little, "That's Natsu speak for you're welcome to stay." She smiled at them, "You should consider asking to join Fairy Tail too! We get a lot of interesting work, and I'm sure you'd be welcome."

"Indeed." Erza agreed, giving the trio a friendly smile, "We would certainly enjoy having two more dragonslayers and another celestial wizard in our ranks."

The three stared at their new nestmates and future guildmates in shock for a moment before Sting erupted into a celebratory roar that spilled over to him happily spinning Yukino around while Rogue smiled in satisfaction. They didn't quite understand what a 'dragonslayer' was, but they could figure it out by context.

"Now... let us enjoy the remainder of the festival shall we?" Erza suggested.

And they did. Despite having to clean up the battlefield it was a good vacation.

But they lost their reward money.

* * *

 _ **Thank you to everyone who reviewed! :D I'll be sending out your responses in a little bit! No sneak peak this time, but I hope you guys enjoy a RIDICULOUSLY LONG CHAPTER. (I mean seriously this thing is ginormous.)**_

 _ **Also, I want to give a special thanks to AJDrakes for giving us BEAUTIFUL ART FROM CHAPTER 37! She illustrated THE scene! THAT ONE. YOU GUYS KNOW THE ONE.**_

 _ **It's rated N for naughty, so avert your eyes! But here is the link! Just replace the X's with periods! mslead(X)tumblr(X)com/post/134435186842/ajdrakes-i-finished-coloring-it-this-is-a**_


	40. Dealing With Dragons

**_Act 3_**

 ** _Please excuse the late update. Mslead fell into a coma after finals._**

* * *

 ** _40_**

 ** _Dealing with Dragons_**

 ** _"No proper princess would come out looking for dragons," Woraug objected._**

 _"Well I'm not a proper princess then!" Cimorene snapped. "I make cherries jubillee and I volunteer for dragons, and I conjugate Latin verbs- or at least I would if anyone would let me. So there!"_

 ** _―_** _Patricia C. Wrede_ ** _, Dealing with Dragons_**

* * *

A week later found Lucy scribbling at her desk, Natsu dozing in the corner of their room with Happy snuggled in the crook of his neck.

After the battle with Motherglare, which had been annoying, something within Natsu seemed to relax. It was almost as if one more piece of himself had become whole again.

It was Lucy. whatever she was doing, it seemed to be working. No matter how he looked at it, she was doing an excellent job at rearranging the jagged pieces of his heart, sculpting it back into something comfortable and solid again.

His eyes drifted upwards, where she swept a long curtain of her hair back from her shoulder to tuck behind her ear. Natsu swallowed, eyes following the gentle slope of her neck and shoulders.

A familiar curl of heat licked at his insides. It was ridiculous. All she was doing was sitting at her desk with her hair pulled from her face.

So why did the sight of her fill his stomach with a coiling pool of nerves?

She was sitting.

Doing.

Nothing.

Ugh, how pathetic could he get?

She was like a snake charmer to his reptilian heritage, and he did not mind at all being taken under her control. After all, it would be willing.

"Natsu," Happy's sleepy voice murmured in his ear, a wet nose pushing lightly into his cheek, "You liiiiiiike her"

The weird trill made Natsu blush, but he rolled the bundle of fur over to set him in the cushions. Happy didn't mind, falling back fast asleep within seconds as Natsu got up to walk behind Lucy. Well the furball wasn't _wrong_. Had he been hanging out with Virgo again?

After that shared night, not much had changed between them. They acted exactly the same as they had before, the only difference being that he got to kiss Lucy now. Sometimes, when they were alone, even more than that. And each time it happened, it made different flutters spill in his ribs. Sometimes it was awkward and rushed, sometimes it was wet and a little messy, but every time he got to feel her smiling lips against his, it was like Natsu's brain stopped working.

Every encounter they had, whether it was hand holding or a small kiss to the cheek, Lucy gently initiated. It was almost as if she was aware of how much hesitation Natsu held. And as grateful as he was for her, and the consideration - Natsu wanted to make it up to her.

There was only one thing he could do for Lucy. Something she never asked for, not even once. But it was something Natsu found he wanted to share with her. Just her.

His heart jumped to his throat nervously, setting his hands nervously on her bare shoulders, "Ah... Lucy..." He murmured against the back of her ear, "Wanna see something fun?"

Lucy shivered in surprise at the feel of his hot breath brushing against her, and the tone of his voice. This sounded curious.

She smiled as she shifted to look at him, "What did you have in mind?" She murmured, distracted from her writing.

She'd been happy to take the lead in their relationship so far, to show him what to do, but from the look on his face he was getting ready to start something on his own.

She set her pen down and leaned into his hands, looking up at him with a grin, "I hope it involves more of your hands rubbing my shoulders."

Natsu chuckled softly as he tugged her gently out of her chair, "No, but I'm sure we can pick that up once we get there."

Now that caught Lucy's interest.

"Where are we going?" She asked, and he grinned broadly, absurdly pleased that it was going so well so far, "It's a surprise." He whispered and moved towards the door, "C'mon."

Completely intrigued by now she followed his lead and quietly tiptoed out of their apartment and down to the street where he promptly picked her up bridal style and grinned, "Hold on. We'll get there a lot faster if I carry you."

Lucy nodded and snuggled close as he took off at a fast run.

Natsu laughed as fire ignited under his heels, rocketing him forward. Happy would be fine for a little while by himself while Natsu showed her something special. It was meant only for her eyes right now. He was showing it to her before the rest of his nest after all.

He ran past the guild, and Natsu could practically feel her natural curiosity mounting with each passing second. Shifting her head back and forth every now and then, she was occasionally looking over his shoulder to see if he went down a familiar street she would recognize.

Natsu hid his smirk and merely continued on.

He let out a rough laugh as he sprinted out of the Magnolia limits. It was then she finally snapped, unable to help herself from asking, "Natsu where are we going?"

Honestly he was surprised it took her so long to ask that question, but Natsu flashed his partner a roguish smile.

"It's a secret!" He sang out.

Twisting and turning, occasionally looking over his shoulder every now and then to ensure they weren't being followed, Natsu made his way into a thickly shadowed meadow. Light pierced like beams through the canopy overhead, leaving wooded patterns over the grass and a curiously flat looking cliff-face.

Natsu set her down, his cheeks flushed and a happy grin on his face.

"Just wait here a second," He promised to her, whipping back around to the wall and feeling against the rocky surface, "Now where did I leave that- aHA!"

His arm seemed to sink into the stone itself, dropping all the way down to his elbow. Lucy almost screamed in fear for his arm when there was a loud 'click' and a massive hole appeared in the previously flat wall.

"What was it? A barrier?" Lucy breathed.

Natsu grinned, "Something like that. I gotta keep it protected while I'm away, right?"

He slid his hand into hers once his arm was free, a smile on his face, "Now come on Lucy! I want to show you my hoard!"

Lucy's eyes widened in shock, "Really?"

She'd never asked to see his hoard even though she'd been somewhat curious about it and it's rumored size. She knew without looking that it wasn't something you just asked to see. That would be like someone randomly asking if they could pretty please see your personal journal or something equally intimate.

Natsu, however, just laughed, "Well yeah! I wouldn't have brought you out here if I didn't! Duh!"

He tugged gently on her hand, pulling her inside past the entrance. Lucy gasped as the barrier re-applied itself once they were inside and the lights started to come on.

Beautiful did not even begin to describe it.

The magic lights he had floating around were a sort of reddish-gold that, honestly, reminded her a little of tiny fires. Overall they weren't very bright, but they didn't really need to be. Their light caught and bounced off piles of gold coins, precious gems, and other treasures worth who knew how much.

Most of it was piled into a gigantic mound in the middle that, hilarious as it sounded, Natsu probably had slept on when he was in his dragon form. As tough as his scales were he probably wouldn't even notice if he rolled over on a diamond or something.

"Natsu... this is amazing!" She breathed in awe, just taking it in, and fighting back the urge to giggle as stories about dragons and princesses and adventurers finding treasure popped into her head.

She knew, realistically, that most of it was stolen, but at the moment that didn't matter. And it probably wouldn't later either. Whatever, whoever, had owned it in the past was probably dead and she just didn't have the heart to scold him about his pride and joy.

Natsu beamed at her, entirely pleased by her reaction, and led her further inside, "C'mon!" He cackled, "I didn't bring you here just to gawk at it!"

Lucy laughed as he grabbed her by her hand and ran through the dancing lights. Their flame-like caresses were warm, but didn't burn Lucy as they burst past them. It was a massive hoard, with a lingering, smoky smell and a permanent warmth that radiated from the walls.

Natsu dragged Lucy up a mountain of gold coins, nearly busting a gut when she slipped on a stack of gold and slipped all the way down, shrieking.

He laughed so hard, he didn't notice when he stepped back onto a plush rug and his feet fell out from underneath him, causing him to slide down right after her, face first.

"This place is a mess!" Lucy laughed as she watched Natsu slam into a tottering pile of paintings, all of which crashed down and buried him.

He popped his head out with a broad grin, even as a corner caught him on the temple, causing him to swear at the frame.

"Is not!"

Lucy grabbed his arm and helped him free himself. Really, it was as if they had dropped into the Cave of Wonders itself. His hoard was just as vast as he always bragged.

"You just got buried by early century classical paintings after I slipped down a slope of gold bars," Lucy smirked at him, "What exactly would you call this?"

He looked up at the ceiling for a second and tapped his finger against his chin.

"Awesome!"

His simple answer made her smile, and she took his hand when they continued their journey anew, up another slope, around a pile of precious stones, through an underpass of ancient artifacts, and skirted across a bridge encrusted with bronze.

Organized chaos was perhaps the best way to describe the glittering landscape they were crossing. Further and further they ventured into Natsu's hoard.

He boldly navigated without ever having to double check himself or glance around. Aside from his first slip, his footing was sound even on the most slippery of surfaces. This was his home.

While all of the south was Natsu's territory, his hoard was where he slept and rested. Lucy felt a sudden thrill over the fact he was sharing it with her.

And as they walked on, Lucy realized after a while, things were getting smaller. There were still piles of gold and the like, but everything seemed to shrink. Almost as if they were stacked not by a dragon, but a human.

"We're in a portion of my hoard from my early years," Natsu said as way as explanation before Lucy could ask. Sure enough, there were items of less value, but of more comfort in this section of his hoard. Meant to sustain a human life instead of the scaled, hardy body of a dragon.

There were furs and pillows, fine fabrics of linen and silk draped from the ceiling and stacked in corners. Soft cushions and blankets, rugs and clothing.

None of which she had seen Natsu actually wear before, but she figured he hadn't cared. From what she could see, there were a few fine, royal gowns encrusted in diamonds, along with a king's crown.

It seemed he didn't care what kind of clothing it was. If it had enough shine to it, he wasn't picky.

Natsu let go over her hand and looked around, "I haven't been in this section of my hoard in a very long time."

He reached out to take some of the fabrics in his hand, rubbing the finer silks together, "I'm surprised these held up. It's been a while after all."

"I think it's beautiful." She replied honestly, glancing around and unable to see a hint of dust or smell a trace of mold. How that was possible was beyond her, but the likely answer was some kind of magic since it wasn't likely Natsu had any idea what polish or dust rags were.

Natsu flashed her a proud grin and began rummaging around through the dresses and things, "Go ahead and look around." He invited as he stuck his head and shoulders into a wardrobe, an idea tickling his brain now that he had her here.

It was silly, and maybe a little childish, but he'd read all those stories about princesses and dragons and while most of them were stupid he remembered chattering at Igneel when he was a hatchling about how he was going to have the prettiest princess ever to be part of his hoard.

Now he had Lucy here, and as far as he was concerned she was definitely the prettiest princess he'd ever seen. And he wanted her to dress the part.

So he carefully shifted through the various gowns until he found one he thought was her size and set it carefully aside before he started sifting through some of the other piles of things for jewelry.

There was no way he was going to let his princess have anything less than the very best.

He peeked over to where she was admiring a pile of furs and silks, running her hands over them in obvious appreciation, and made a mental note to bring some of them back too. The furs especially would be a nice addition.

Once he was done he managed to unearth a mannequin and slipped behind a screen to arrange everything on it.

Perfect.

He tried to swallow back his sudden nerves as he studied the finished presentation. He really hoped she liked it.

Well, she as a girl right? That meant she liked dresses! ...Right?

A terrifying image of Erza slashing through her enemies with a sword and donned in a wedding dress sprang to his mind. He swallowed tightly in fear, suddenly grateful Lucy was not a requip mage like her.

He fingered the fluffy gown, encrusted in jewels and dripping with rare laces. Honestly he had no reason why he kept it. And at the time when he had stolen it, all he had been thinking about was stripping it of its rare stones.

He was glad he hadn't though and his natural laziness had kicked in, leaving it intact.

Would she like it? Or would she totally hate it? Natsu didn't know a whole lot about Lucy's life back at home, other than the fact she had been her world's equivalent of royalty.

And she hated it.

Perhaps she wouldn't like it after all?

"Oh crap, I'm an idiot," Natsu muttered and began to try to shove the dress, mannequin and all, into the wardrobe.

He nearly felt his spirit leave his body when a gentle touch rested on his back and Lucy's scent returned to his senses.

She was setting her chin lightly over his shoulder, looking at the flowing dress in curiosity.

"What's this?" She asked, ducking under his arm to trace her fingertips along the embroidered bodice.

"Ah... Uhm," Natsu swallowed, "That is-"

"It's beautiful!" Lucy exclaimed as she tried to get a better look at it, "Why are you hiding it in the wardrobe?"

She shot him such a confused look that he couldn't help flushing guiltily, "I thought you wouldn't like it." He mumbled, and her confused expression deepened.

"Why wouldn't I like it?" She asked and when Natsu just shuffled his feet she shook her head and gently pulled it out of his hands so she could pull it out and properly look at it.

Her eyes widened as she took in the full splendor of the dress and the jewelry that was with it. She didn't know if it was meant to be a matching set or not, but it was a beautiful combination regardless.

"Natsu..." She breathed in awe, gently caressing her fingers over a creation that looked like it was meant to adorn a royal's back on her wedding day or coronation, "This is exquisite!"

She wondered what it would be like to wear such a thing, and knew immediately it could only be for special occasions. Not even she had enough money for something like this to be worn only once.

But at the same time it was far too fine to wear regularly.

"You... like it?" Natsu asked hesitantly, wanting to be sure, "I thought you didn't like royal stuff?"

Lucy shot him a confused look again, "Where did you get that idea?" She asked, but immediately her own confusion cleared as she realized what he must be thinking.

"Oh! No." She grinned at him, "It's the stuffy manners and lifestyle I don't like. And I like being independent too." She turned her attention back to admiring the gown, "Objects and money don't buy happiness." She explained, and flashed him a slight smirk, "But I don't mind appreciating the finer things in life sometimes."

She gently ran a hand over a jewel encrusted hem, "And this is about as fine as you can get. Really. It's a work of art."

"Then you can have it!" Natsu found himself blurting out.

A wide smile had raced over his face, especially at the absolutely dumbstruck look on her face. Which made it all the more rewarding.

He didn't blame her, Natsu had made it clear he hated sharing any portion of his hoard with anyone. And he had just given Lucy a very expensive trinket from it.

"You want me to-" She stared at the dress, her jaw dropping open in shock at the fine fabrics rustling against her fingertips. Really, it was too pretty for her to just wear it. She couldn't do that, could she?

"Yeah, why not?" Natsu flashed her a bored look, as if already done with the conversation, He walked over to the jewelry accompanying it and placed a tiara on her head.

His finger circled the golden band and he grinned at her crookedly, "Don't look too shocked."

He pouted at her fish-eyed expression, a little offended himself for her utter disbelief, "It ain't like I'm going to be wearin' it any time soon."

"Any time soon?" Lucy smirked at him, which caused him to growl at her.

Natsu crossed the space between them in a second, dropping his chin heavily on the top of her head and propping his elbows on her shoulders as he used her entire body as his personal rest.

"Laugh it up Lucy," He purred happily, and she couldn't help but sink backwards into his chest, his smoky scent filling the space around them, "You're not going to deny a gift from a dragon."

"You know you can't keep going back and forth between calling yourself a dragonslayer to dragon whenever it's convenient for you," Lucy complained.

"Watch me," was his smug response.

Lucy rolled her eyes at him, but leaned over and pulled him into a sweet kiss, "Thank you." She murmured, wrapping her arms around him in a hug.

She'd found that the smallest touches and gestures seemed to mean the most to Natsu. Something she could fully understand. After all, it was in the small ways that the most was said, even if he was still a bit hesitant to accept the gestures for what they were and not blows.

She smiled when he hesitantly wrapped his arms around her as well, something he hadn't actually done very often so far, and hugged her back.

"You're welcome." He murmured into her hair with a smile, "I'm glad you like it."

It was hard for him to describe how he was feeling at the moment, but he knew it was good. She was here, in his arms, and she liked his present. He didn't know why, but that meant a lot to him.

He pulled back after a moment though and grinned at her, "So are you gonna try it on or what?"

Lucy blinked a little in surprise, "What? Now?"

"Well sure now silly!" Natsu cackled, "You can't be my captured princess until you dress the part right?"

Lucy gaped at him, not sure how to respond to that, but the broad grin, with almost child-like eagerness, on his face had her caving in an instant.

"Fine." She grinned as she gathered the mannequin and sashayed behind a privacy screen that was probably worth as much as her dress, "But no peeking!"

Natsu snorted back as he watched Lucy's attempt at being cute fail as her heel caught on some gold and she nearly fell over on her face, dragging the dress with her.

Her face bright red as she scurried behind it, Natsu fell over in a peal of laughter, momentarily distracting himself from the thought of Lucy changing not five feet away.

"It's not funny!" Lucy protested. Natsu's laughter increased in volume, the silliness of the mental image jumping to his mind, along with Lucy's offended voice.

"B-But y-you-!" Natsu wheezed, curling down to rest on his calves, wiping tears from his eyes as he giggled hysterically.

"You were trying to look so smooth!" Natsu snorted, but yelped as one of Lucy's boots dropped onto his head out of nowhere.

He blinked, staring up over his head at the sight of a small, circular gate just large enough to drop her boot to nail him in the face.

"Looks like I'm getting better at this, huh?" Lucy said triumphantly, and Natsu could catch a sight of her smirk from the other side of the gate.

He just shrugged and took the boot, giving the portal a baleful look.

"I can see your panties," Came his dry response to her bragging.

Predictably, Lucy let out another shriek, even despite Natsu's bold-faced lie and the gate snapped shut in his face. All it did was encourage him to start laughing anew.

"J-jerk!" Wow, Natsu could practically hear the blush on her face. It was incredible.

Sliding up to the screen, but not peering around it despite how he was tempted, Natsu rested his hand against the frame. He cocked his head, not quite able to understand her 'no peeking' rule.

She stared at him all the time, right? And they had done...things together. A blushed worked over his cheeks at the memories.

Really, Lucy was so weird with her rules sometimes. They didn't make any sense.

Lucy spotted his silhouette on the other side, but didn't argue about it. As long as he didn't come peeking it was fine.

Personally, she wouldn't mind him seeing her sans clothes again, but she wanted him to see the full effect of her change. It was a kind of surprise. One she wanted to put as much effort into as he had putting together her present.

Because even if he thought it up thirty seconds before he did it he'd still gone to the trouble of putting it together, and she found that incredibly sweet. Especially since it meant so much to him.

Even if she didn't really understand why that was as he'd probably forgotten it was there.

So she carefully slid the magnificent creation on, grateful that at least it wasn't the kind that required help getting into or out of, and put on her jewelry. For a mercy, there was a gold and jewel encrusted comb not too far away so she was able to comb her hair out a little before she placed the crown on and stepped around the screen with as much poise and dignity as she was able to muster.

She held her chin high, the very image of the proper young lady, and smiled at him, "What do you think Natsu?" She asked.

Natsu was pretty sure his brain had melted and was dribbling out his ears.

When he'd put the whole thing together he'd somehow failed to think about what it would look like on her outside of the vaguest terms. Now he knew, and the sight was enough to stun him speechless.

"Whoa Lucy," He finally managed to find his tongue after several seconds of mindless searching. Natsu's throat worked hard, swallowing thickly.

"You look super-..." Natsu stared at her, "-weird..."

He mentally slapped himself, because even he knew that wasn't how he wanted his words to come out.

"Wow, thanks," Lucy's eyebrow ticked with the beginning signs of her all-consuming temper rising to the surface. Her fingers gathered around the folds of her tulle filled petticoat, hiking the skirt up high enough to expose her legs.

Natsu took a self-preserving step back, knowing the preparations for a Lucy-kick when he saw one.

He tilted his head at her and crossed his arms over his chest, trying best to find a way to soothe her before he inserted his entire foot into his mouth.

"It's just- I'm not used to seeing you like this," Natsu admitted. He began to approach her again, his fingers sliding into the dress next to where her hands were gathering fabric.

"When I first met you, I thought of you like some kind of frilly, helpless princess," He flashed her a crooked grin, "But seeing you like this is totally weird."

She was unmistakably beautiful. There was also no denying the grace and pose she held herself was someone of noble upbringing, however the fierceness in her warm eyes-

It was more suiting for a mage than a princess. Although he supposed there was no harm in her being both.

Still, Natsu was positive like this, Lucy could swindle a hundred men out of their jewel in seconds.

Lucy eyed him for a moment before deciding this was probably his attempt at giving her a compliment. It looked weird because it wasn't how she normally looked, and if he didn't see her as the frilly, useless, type to wear stuff like then that meant he thought she was strong?

It was an odd game of connect the dots, but that was often what she had to do with Natsu. He never said stuff he didn't mean, but figuring out what he really did mean by what he said was tricky sometimes.

She gave him a slightly exasperated look, "One of these days you'll tell me I look stunningly gorgeous or something instead of weird and I'll fall over in shock." She huffed slightly, but a fond smile kept tugging at her lips and making it difficult to keep up the appearance she was even a little angry.

Natsu folded his hands over hers, a crooked grin flashing over his cheeks and he gave her a smug look, "You look stunningly gorgeous." He parroted.

"Smug jerk," She shook her head a little, and smirked at him, "Alright, well now that you have your 'weird' looking princess... now what?" She grinned wickedly at his surprised look, "C'mon you must have more to whatever fantasy is in your head than this..." She wheedled.

He blinked and then grinned toothily back at her, a look that promised nothing but mischief, "Well..." He purred.

Natsu spun by her, wickedly and snagged the end of the gown, flipping it up playfully as he backed away. A growl came from him, dark eyes alight with something so silly it almost didn't look as if it belonged on his once-serious face.

Or perhaps it always had been playful, Lucy noted, squeaking as she jammed her dress back down around her legs.

"Let's see how quick the princess can move!" Natsu taunted and disappeared behind a large pile of gold.

He cackled like a child, and Lucy rolled her eyes at the sight of pink spikes poking out from the other side of the gold.

"So. It's going to be like that, is it?" Lucy smirked at Natsu.

Really, he wanted to play hide and seek? Natsu was truly a child at heart. Especially since he seemed to think it was appropriate for her to play in a gown as expensive as the one she was dressed in.

"Alright then Natsu!" Lucy challenged, a wicked grin following, "I bet you this princess is going wrangle herself a dragon!"

Gathering her skirts, she took off after him, a broad grin on her face as they played together in his hoard. Something so innocent and fun, neither of them even questioned it.

Unfortunately, it was not a fun felt through all of Magnolia.

-::-

Gray frowned at the mages laying at his feet. His arms crossed over his chest and he stared back at Magnolia. Frost still clung to his hands from where he was conjuring magic. and Juvia rose up from the river behind him.

"Naked mummy this time," Juvia noted with apprehension, "Aren't they-?"

"Yeah," Gray's teeth came together in a loud clack. It betrayed the storm of uneasy emotions coming to him, "They're a dark guild directly under the Oracian Seis."

Juvia went still and stepped out from the water. Her hand searched out Gray's who offered it freely. She took it gratefully and squeezed his wrist with her other hand.

"That was the guild which attacked Lucy," Juvia swallowed. Sure, Naked Mummy had not been a difficult guild to defeat, but they had come so close to Magnolia. The fact they had dared take such a risk was almost unheard.

"It's been pretty quiet as of late, but I don't think they've forgotten about her. Not by a long shot," Gray's eyes darkened, growing heavy with thoughts, "Looks like this was just the opening volley."

"You mean-?"

Gray looked at Juvia and nodded.

"They're about to make their move."

* * *

 _ **FINALS ARE OVAH. I AM FREE. Thank you everyone who reviewed! We didn't get enough reviews for a sneak peek, but finals are over so here you go!** _

_**Also totally haven't been around enough to do my review responses. ;3; I failed you, BUUUUT. AJDrakes drew some FANTASTIC ART for THIS CHAPTER.**_

 _ **Damn son, that was fast! HERE IT IS! You know the drill, replace the (x) with periods!**_

 _ **ajdrakes(x)tumblr(x)com/post/134976575971/oh-would-you-look-at-the-time-400-in-the-morning**_

* * *

 _This was her home. Her new world. It was everything her birth world wasn't and never could be. She would fight to stay here._

 _She jumped a little when she felt a warm hand land on her shoulder and looked up to see Natsu, his eyes locked fiercely on Erza, "We're not gonna ignore anything!" He snarled, "Those dark guild jerks want to fight then we'll give them a fight they won't forget!" He bared his fangs, "They're gonna regret ever messing with Lucy or Fairy Tail!"_

 _Lucy couldn't help it. She really couldn't. A warm smile floated to her face at the sight of his ferocity. Even despite the direness of the situation and the threat to her life, his words made something in her heart float._

 _Not because of his declaration for her, although that was certainly part of it._

 _But because of his declaration to Fairy Tail._


	41. Dune

_**Act 3**_

 _ **TODAY IS KYTRIN'S BIRTHDAY!**_

 _ **WISH HER A HAPPY BIRTHDAY HERE AND ON TUMBLR! GO DO IT. SPAM HER WITH LOVE. PRETTY PLEASE.**_

* * *

 _ **41**_

 _ **Dune**_

 _"Fear is the mind-killer."_  
 _―_ Frank Herbert _ **, Dune**_

* * *

Erza scowled thunderously at the various bodies strewn before her, not at all pleased to have found them there even if beating them up had been somewhat satisfying.

"Is that all of them?" She asked without turning her glare away.

"As near as I can tell yes." Jellal replied as he stepped out of the shadows to join her with a dark frown of his own, "Though if it isn't we'll have an easy time spotting them." He nudged a fallen body with a foot, "The Black Unicorn are neither particularly subtle nor bright."

He looked at his fiancé, "I know we've been trying to avoid worrying Lucy about this, but we can't ignore it anymore. Gray wasn't exaggerating how close they're getting."

Erza sighed, "I know you're right. I just wanted to give Lucy a chance to relax and not think about it. She and Natsu have both been so happy lately..."

Jellal dropped his hand on her shoulder and shifted so he was in her line of sight, "And while it was just an isolated incident with Naked Mummy that was fine. But this is twice in the past week. We can't keep this under wraps anymore."

Erza nodded, and straightened, "Very well." She replied briskly, "I'll inform the master."

Jellal nodded and gave her a quick kiss, "I'll deal with these and catch up." He promised.

Erza hesitated for a moment, aware of what he was likely about to do, but nodded again and took off towards Magnolia and the guild.

She trusted Jellal not to take it too far. He was a good man, and had come a long way from the crazed man he had once been. It was too eerie for both The Black Unicorn and Naked Monkey to arrive as close to their guild as they had. One under Grimoire Heart, the other under the Oracian Seis.

Tartarus, in general, had been absolute in its silence over the matter concerning Lucy. A fact which was both a relief and a fear of Erza's. The third guild in the Baram Alliance was full of demons, but its goal was as elusive as the demonic members which plagued its halls.

Why did they remain silent?

It could only mean they had another goal in mind.

The time for holding their tongues was over. She was afraid they were standing on the precipice of a war, and Erza knew they had to be prepared lest they get caught off guard.

With Lucy's life staked in the middle, it left Erza no other option than to inform her of the guilds coming after her with more urgency.

Erza could only hope whatever Jellal found out from the men would not spell disaster for their home and their guildmate. Lucy had finally begun to blossom into her magic and now wielded it with enough accuracy to do a solid amount of damage in battle. But a war?

No one could prepare for that kind of fight.

She ran back to the guild, scarlet hair whipping around her like flames, stopping just outside the heavy door. From where she stood outside it, she could hear the loud laughter within, the jovial merry making and music shaking the walls.

A ghost of a sad smile trailed over her face, and Erza swallowed thickly.

They were so happy. Natsu's bellowing laughter, changed to challenging snarls in a second, and she could only guess - with exasperation, he had begun to pick a fight with Gray.

An incredible burden was about to be placed upon their shoulders. Erza could only hope they bore the responsibility well.

Stiffening her spine, she shoved open the doors with enough force to slam them against the guild walls.

The guild went silent at once, gaping at Erza's abrupt and admittedly dramatic entrance.

Natsu was squatting on the table in front of Gray, a hand buried in the ice wizard's hair while Gray dragged his fingers in Natsu's mouth to pull apart his cheeks. They gave one another twin expressions of terror when they caught sight of Erza.

She purposefully ignored their relieved sighs when she strode past them, her eyes glinting with steel to rival even that of Gajeel's scales.

"I have news concerning the Dark Guilds, Grimoire Heart and Oracian Seis!" She announced, "We believe they are gathering forces for an attack."

The silence that had preceded her announcement morphed into gasps and mutterings immediately after.

Lucy felt her blood go cold, aware that she was the reason for the dark guilds attacking, "Are you sure?" She asked faintly, not wanting to believe it, but not daring to disbelieve it either.

Erza nodded firmly, "Jellal and I caught a small contingent from Dark Unicorn attempting to infiltrate Magnolia and ultimately the guild. Jellal is questioning them now, but there's little doubt their goal was you Lucy."

"Well they're not gonna get her!" Sting snarled furiously and stepped forward a little, "Whatever they want her for they'll have to go through us to get to her!" He glanced at her and then Natsu, "She's part of the nest, and even if she wasn't we owe her."

"Indeed." Erza agreed, while Levy wrapped a supportive arm around Lucy's shoulders, "They will have to fight through all of us, but we must begin preparations now." She frowned, "We were lulled into complacency when nothing happened at first. We can't afford to ignore this now."

Lucy's heart twisted at Erza's words and the deafening roar that greeted them. She hated that she was putting everyone in danger like this, but at the same time it touched her deeply that she had so many willing to take on such powerful and frightening people for her sake.

However, despite her conflicted feelings, she wasn't about to back down now. This was her home. Her new world. It was everything her birth world wasn't and never could be. She would fight to stay here.

She jumped a little when she felt a warm hand land on her shoulder and looked up to see Natsu, his eyes locked fiercely on Erza, "We're not gonna ignore anything!" He snarled, "Those dark guild jerks want to fight then we'll give them a fight they won't forget!" He bared his fangs, "They're gonna regret ever messing with Lucy or Fairy Tail!"

Lucy couldn't help it. She really couldn't. A warm smile floated to her face at the sight of his ferocity. Even despite the direness of the situation and the threat to her life, his words made something in her heart float.

Not because of his declaration for her, although that was certainly part of it.

But because of his declaration to Fairy Tail.

The answering roar to his next shout of _'Lets kick their asses!'_ was enough to blow the roof off the guild, and Lucy felt her breath hitch.

Somehow, without even realizing it, this had become her family.

It had become Natsu's family as well.

They had found a home in this place. A guild which was just supposed to be a temporary stopping point in their lives.

It was the first time Lucy had heard Natsu roar so passionately about the guild, and she didn't think for even a moment it would be the last either.

She balled a hand into a fist, despite the tears building in her eyes. They were stinging against her cheeks, but held happiness, fear, and determination.

And it gave her the strength to fight in this battle too. She would stay in her home. She would stay with her family. She would stay with Natsu.

"Yeah!" She shouted next to him, a little choked, "Lets kick their asses!"

Natsu snorted at her half-hearted swearing and teary face. His attention swung back to her fully, a smile on his face and determination in his eyes.

"Hey, no more crying," He said encouragingly, "Unless they're tears of victory. Because we're Fairy Tail right?"

Lucy felt his ever-burning hand slip into hers, their fingers threading together.

"...Right!"

Erza smiled proudly at the pair while Makarov nodded, "Very well then." He said standing up, a fierce glint in his eyes, "If it's a war they want then it's a war they'll get." He frowned thoughtfully, "Levy, take Gajeel and alert the mayor. We can't predict when they'll attack, but the more alert the townspeople are the better."

"Right." Levy agreed as she stood up and she and Gajeel headed out.

"Natsu, I want you and the other dragonslayers to work with Erza and Jellal to try and cover patrol routes. I realize only three of you can transform right now, but that's three more in the sky than we have right now."

Natsu grinned fiercely, already winding up for the fight, but Makarov was moving on already, "Lucy, I'd like you to contact Leo. Let him know what we've found out and to have his people be alert for anything unusual." He frowned stonily, "If the worst happens then it will be up to them to stop things in the celestial realm before it goes too far."

He eyed the rest of his children pensively, disliking the idea of them essentially preparing for war, but aware not one of them would stand to be left behind under the circumstances.

"We've got a lot of work to do if we're going to come through this battle." He told them sternly, "Let's get to work!"

There was a determined roar of agreement from the guild as they all broke up and started getting ready.

All of them were veterans of battles with Natsu and other various bad guys over the centuries. This was nothing new to them, and they were determined that Fairy Tail would survive intact. Just as it always had.

Natsu stayed next to Lucy. While it was true their bond seemed to allow them a ridiculous amount of space from one another, Natsu wasn't intending on pushing that limit when they were about to go into a fight.

"C'mon Lucy, we're going to hit the ground while Gajeel and the others take to the air," His cheeks puffed out in displeasure, his hand closing around Lucy's.

He felt Happy's soft weight drop down onto his shoulder, glancing up at the cat, who was both worried looking, and a little confused.

"But why?" Happy asked, his large eyes pleading as they shifted between Lucy and Natsu, "Why can't you fly with them Natsu? Aren't you going to transform?"

Lucy winced at the curious look Happy was giving Natsu. She couldn't quite see her partner's face, but knew his thoughts must have been flying a mile a minute.

"Eh, who needs to fly when I got you buddy?" Natsu dropped a tan hand into Happy's fur, "You're starting to get pretty big now, I bet you could pick up a hundred Lucy's!"

"Oh I could never do that," Happy said with solemn eyes but a mischievous smile.

"Just a single Lucy would rip my arms off," He said plaintively, causing Natsu to bark out a laugh before Lucy smacked them both.

"I am not that heavy you stupid cat!" Lucy huffed, her cheeks flaming red as Happy fluttered off, laughing.

Natsu grinned as he watched their blue companion go, who was announcing to the guild one day he would be strong enough to be Natsu's wings. Such a declaration warmed his heart, even if it was ridiculous coming from the fuzzy kitten.

A small tug on his scarf pulled his attention backwards, to where Lucy was giving him a pensive look.

"I know you don't talk about it a lot," Lucy said in a hesitant voice. It trembled with concern, rising up from her flushed irritation over Happy's words, "But your dragon form- you've only been able to tap into it once since you've been bound to me."

"Yeah." Natsu sighed, unusually somber for the moment, "And I'm not sure if I can replicate it."

He glanced over at Lucy's guilty face and cracked a grin at her, "Don't worry about it! It'll be fine! We'll tear those dark guild jerks up so badly it wouldn't matter if I did transform!"

"I just wish I could control the bond." Lucy said worriedly, "So you at least had the option."

Natsu felt his heart skip a beat that she would grant him that kind of freedom if she could. It was a sign of how much she'd grown to trust him. Something that even six months ago he would've been internally cackling about and trying to take advantage of.

But he wasn't that dragon anymore.

He was better because of her. And happier than he'd been since before Igneel died.

He eyed her for a moment and burst into laughter, "Aw, c'mon Lucy!" He grinned broadly at her, "You say that like you think it's your fault or something!" He shrugged at her surprised look, "Well it's not like you would've known what that jerk Hades was going to cast right? And I know you don't know enough about magic to figure it out. So don't worry about it."

The looked he gave her was so fiercely warm and determined that Lucy felt her hesitation melt away. He was right. The bond was something neither of them could control, so there was no point in worrying about it.

Though that didn't stop her from wishing she _could_ control it.

"Hey, I might miss flying a little, but I figure I spent way more time as a dragon than I have in this form, it won't kill me to spend a few centuries in this body while you figure it out," Natsu said with an oblivious smile.

"Besides, Happy will be big enough to carry me soon. And until then, well... We always got Lily," Natsu dropped his thick arm around Lucy's shoulders, dragging her to his side.

"We got other things to worry about now anyway aside from my horns and scales," Natsu gave her a cheery look, his fingers tightening on her arm in a gentle squeeze. She felt his warmth in the pit of her stomach, causing her to smile.

The guild was all milling around, doing everything they needed to complete. Tasks were handed out to everyone, no matter how small, but Natsu and Lucy stood side by side with one another.

Hesitantly, his eyes flashed to hers. A tongue swiped out to wet his lips, and Lucy caught his hesitant gaze.

Before she could ask what was wrong, he bent down and set a hand on her cheek. His kiss was brushing and gentle against her mouth. There was something comforting in the caress of his skin against hers, filling her with a fuzzy sort of surprise and affection.

He had kissed her before, but never before in the middle of the guild. And certainly not like that.

Whenever he initiated a kiss, it was usually a sloppy, cheerful thing. Wet and mostly gross, but filled with boyish affection and overflowing joy.

This was the same, but it missed his usual silliness. Natsu's ever-present smile was still in his eyes and the curve of his cheeks, but the touch was grazing and made her heart feel very full.

"You ready to kick some ass?" He asked her.

Lucy smiled at him, still slightly dazed from that kiss, and nodded, "Yeah!" She breathed, resisting the urge to drag him somewhere private so they could continue what they were doing. They had work to do now, and there wasn't time for any kind of making out.

However much she might really want to.

She stared at him for a long moment, a slightly goofy grin on her face, before she shook herself a little and took a half a step back, "Right. I should summon Leo then." She said, a faint blush staining her cheeks.

He just gave her a toothy grin, and before she quite realized what she was thinking she pulled him into another kiss. This one was just as sweet, if a touch hungrier, and she only ended it when Cana wolf whistled at them, drawing everyone else's attention too.

"C'mon you lovebirds!" The brazen brunette grinned shamelessly, "You can grope each other later! We got work to do!"

Lucy and Natsu both blushed brightly, and shot grins at each other before they separated. Natsu going to Erza, and Lucy retreating to a quiet corner where she would have enough room to summon Leo.

She silently cursed Cana as she noticed what seemed like every eye in the guild on her, but firmly straightened up as she pulled out Leo's key, "Open! Gate of the Lion!"

It only took a moment for Leo to appear, looking as immaculate as always in the suit he'd worn since contracting to her.

"You called princess?" He purred with a flirtatious smirk, pleased when she couldn't entirely hide a smile as she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah." Lucy replied, sobering in an instant when she remembered why she'd called him, "Master Makarov asked me to let you know that the Oracion Seis are gearing up to attack the guild for me."

Leo's expression morphed into one of disgruntlement. His eyes narrowed and the glasses he donned shadowed his face.

"Alright then," Leo cracked his knuckles, squaring up his jaw to get ready for a fight, "What do you need from me?"

Lucy nodded, pleased he was taking the threat seriously, even despite some of his more flirtatious behaviors. Honestly, Leo could be ridiculous sometimes. Once he had bailed out on her summoning so he could go on a date. A date.

"The Oracian Seis have a celestial wizard in their ranks. She uses spirits sometimes too, and even though many of her keys made contracts with me, I don't know if any stayed."

"You want me to keep an eye out on the celestial realm," Leo frowned, "And if any unusual activity starts to stir, to alert you?"

Lucy nodded, "It may be our only chance of early detection if Angel is still using her spirits."

He looked concerned, uncertainty flickering across his face, "The celestial realm is very large Lucy - and there are a whole lot of spirits to keep an eye on."

"I know," She apologized, "But it might be our only chance."

She took his hand and squeezed it thankfully, "Besides, if something happens to me, you all have to be prepared for the worst, right?"

Leo's lips flattened into a line, the feline ears on the top of his head twitching with remorse.

"Lucy..."

She was saved from responding when something hard rammed into her from behind. Lucy's world tilted in an instant as she slammed into Leo's chest, his arms flinging out to catch her.

Vaguely, she was aware of Natsu shouting behind her ear, "Get down!"

His solid weight crushed into Lucy's back, and belatedly she realized he was the one who essentially clotheslined her and Leo.

His hand was on the back of her head, cramming Lucy's face into Leo's suited chest and nearly smothering her. She managed to crane her head to the side just enough to see Natsu's eyes searching out for his nest, "Sting! Rogue get Wendy!"

His shout came too late, and suddenly the roof of the guild came crashing down around their heads.

-::-

Jellal stared at the members of Dark Unicorn, his eyes widening with horror at the words he managed to drag out from their leader.

"What... did you just say?" He breathed through stiff lips.

The leader of Dark Unicorn smirked past his bloodied nose and split lip. It stretched out into a pained grimace, but the malicious glee he held in his eyes was evidence enough to the truth behind his words.

"I said we were just the distraction," he coughed wetly. The sound was unpleasant, but Jellal paid no attention to that. He grabbed the man by the front of his shirt, his eyes wild and anger clenching his jaw.

"You-!"

"Better hurry back to Fairy Tail," The man laughed, "Didn't you send your fiance back that way?"

His eyes lidded, "The party is about to start."

* * *

 _ **ALRIGHT GUYS! IN CASE YOU MISSED IT, TODAY IS KYTRIN'S BIRTHDAY! GO SHOWER HER IN LOVE AND AFFECTION! I WON'T GET TO SEE HER FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS NOW (hopefully) SO WE GOTTA MAKE TODAY GREAT FOR HER! OK? ALRIGHT!**_

 _ **Also, since we've been ASKED more than once.**_

 _ **NO. NATSU AND LUCY DID NOT GO ALL THE WAY. People can do intimate things together. Natsu is inexperienced right now and realistically would not have lasted more than three seconds if they tried.**_

 _ **Special thanks to everyone who reviewed! I send out your review responses! Here are guest reviews!**_

 _ **Amy -** (I know, Natsu has come a long way hasn't he?) **, Guest -** (I'm glad you like the book! It's very important! **) , AnimeNeko -** (OH WOW YOUR FAVORITE? THANKS SO MUCH!) **, Guest -** (Thanks!) **, Animallover -** (I'm glad you agree! Natsu's definitely in deep shit with Lucy. He can't help it. Natsu just needs baby steps for him to get there. You would be right. This is where everything starts happening. 8D There aren't that many chapters left in Act 3.) **, Avengerika -** (I know they are such a cute couple! WE LOVE THEM SO MUCH. GRAAAH. Motherglare is just a sideshow for what we've got next. Hahaha. I'm glad you liked the pace!) _

**_No sneak peek this time, we didn't get enough reviews, but stay tuned for a special chapter for Kytrin's birthday on tumblr! It will be belated since I haven't gotten a chance to draw with my Graduation and Finals, but it'll be on its way soon!_**

 ** _Thanks again!_**


	42. The War of the Worlds

_**Act 3**_

* * *

 _ **42**_

 _ **The War of the Worlds**_

 _"I was a battleground of fear and curiosity."_  
― H.G. Wells, _**The War of the Worlds**_

* * *

For a moment Lucy couldn't hear anything beyond her own frantic heartbeat as Natsu caged her in from above and she was pressed into Leo. It was as if the world was holding its breath and she was holding it with it.

Then, the sound of a beam shifting brought the world back into sharp focus and suddenly she was hearing her guildmates groaning and coughing.

"Is everyone alright?" Sting coughed shakily through the dust. There was the sound of creaking wood and she could feel Natsu shifting around above her.

"What happened?" She coughed slightly as the dust began tickling the back of her throat.

She wasn't the only one asking though as the rest of the guild, mostly miraculously unhurt, began dusting off and climbing to their feet. The reason for that state of things was immediately clear though.

Sting and Rogue had transformed into their partial dragon selves and were busy holding the majority of the roof up. Though it was clear it was a strain for them to do, and they wouldn't be able to for much longer.

"Okay! Everyone get outside!" Erza commanded just as a frantic looking Jellal, Levy, and Gajeel arrived at the door, "If anyone's hurt say so! The dragons can't hold the roof for long!"

Gajeel took one look at the situation and moved in to help hold the roof while the others made it outside.

"Dark Unicorn was a distraction." Jellal growled as soon as he was in range, but was prevented from saying more as he dodged a blast of poison from above.

The cause of the roof collapse was none other than a dragon-shaped Cobra, who remained perched on top of the guild hall, glaring down at them all with acidic green eyes.

His claws ripped out a portion of the guild hall as he dropped down next to them, his tail slamming into the side and sending a wall collapsing forward on the occupants still within.

"How fun! Seeing all the fairies squirm!" Cobra laughed cruelly, sinking forward to allow his guild members to climb down from his back.

"And look, you have some new additions to your little guild," Cobra looked quite pleased with himself, his tail flashing from one side to another.

Natsu's expression went dark with rage as he stalked forward, "And you're not touching them!" He snarled at the other dragon.

He didn't know Cobra's history, and he didn't care. Cobra was not a drake and trying to challenge him, and he was going to pound his poison face into the ground for even thinking he could take him on no matter what form he was currently in.

"Aw, how cute! The little bound dragon thinks he can take our dear Cobra out!" Angel mocked laughingly, but it stopped the moment she got a look at Lucy and pure rage crossed her face, " _You_!"

"I guess she's still sore about losing." Lucy muttered, though not quietly enough.

"As if I would lose to you," Angel snapped back at her, stomping on the crown of Cobra's head, ignoring his grunted 'hey!'

"You needed help to even put up a fight against me!" Angel's eyes narrowed and her hands rose, flipping a coin between her fingers. It rolled lightly across her knuckles before it was plucked delicately into the air.

"I don't need those useless spirits anymore anyway," She sneered, a devilish smirk rising to her face, "Not when I have my angels."

"Fly my angels! Scatter these flies!" She cried out, a whirl of tiny creatures spinning out from her and slamming into the ground outside with devastating force.

It forced everyone to leap to one side to escape the onslaught, Natsu separating from Lucy to avoid getting nailed by a mischievous spirit between the legs.

"You dirty, rotten-!" He shouted, swearing as he was forced to dance further and further away from Lucy until he was face to face with Cobra again.

His eyes narrowed up at the dragon, upper lip curling in disgust, "You again? What makes you think I'd be afraid of someone whose ass I kicked once already?"

Cobra lifted a poison claw and slashed at Natsu's torso, causing him to twist away and jump onto his forearm.

"Because I can hear your wavering heart," Cobra laughed, "You don't have the power to defeat me."

"I got power to spare for the likes of you!" Natsu snarled furiously, becoming more enraged by the moment despite his fear of being away from Lucy.

"Please!" The poison dragon scoffed, "Do you really think I believe that?" He laughed, "I can still hear your heart, and how it's racing in fear! How pathetic. The mighty End reduced to the strength of a helpless hatchling, and worried about the fate of one pitiful woman!"

He peered closely at them and sneered, "A woman he should've killed the moment the bond wore off!"

 _What?_

The thought interrupted Natsu's focus for a moment, rooting his feet into the ground. He stared up at the dragon, his right hand half-curled into a fist.

Cobra's claw took him on his unguarded side, slapping him with the strength of a train and hurtling Natsu deep into the treeline.

Distantly, Natsu heard Lucy scream as he tumbled backwards, his body snapping trees. Gathering magic around himself to cushion his fall, fire erupted around him enough to slow him from being blown to Oaktown.

"Natsu!" Lucy cried urgently, but was forced to duck as another spirit zoomed towards her head. Leo slammed his fist into another angel that came daringly close to Lucy.

"We'll be overwhelmed at this rate Lucy," Leo's eyes narrowed against the the hundreds of tiny angels threatening to pound them into jello, "My light can hit a broad area, but it's also going to hurt your allies."

Something Angel no doubt knew by the evil glint in her eyes.

And also realized it was a risk Lucy couldn't take with so many of her friends nearby.

Glaring at her, she snagged Leo's key on her ring, giving him a steady look. She would just have to beat her this time without him, "Don't worry. I've got this! Close, gate of the lion!"

Leo gave Lucy one last worried look, but obediently left, knowing she needed to conserve her strength for the battle ahead.

"Aw, the cat is gone so soon?" Angel jeered at Lucy, causing her ire to rise to the surface like a swelling inferno. Perhaps some of Natsu's temper had rubbed off on her, because Lucy wanted nothing more than to snag Angel by the curly lock of hair on her forehead and _pull_.

"Focus Lucy don't let her get under your skin!" Erza called as she summoned her swords and armor, "We'll have to trust Natsu to deal with Cobra himself. We must deal with Angel and the others!"

Lucy hesitated a moment, but then frowned and nodded as she straightened up, "Right." She pulled her keys and prepared to summon only to freeze entirely when a new figure stepped out around Angel with a smirk. _Two_ Oracion Seis at once? That wasn't good.

"Well, I wasn't expecting to see you in front of me." The man purred at her, his smirk stretching into something entirely cruel and chilling, "I have to say, I much preferred you in your nightgown. It was so _very_ flattering to you."

Nightgown? When would he have seen her in that? Lucy stared at him in confusion for a moment as she tried to figure out when she'd even seen or heard of this guy. Though there _was_ something oddly familiar about him. She was sure she would remember seeing someone like him around since the whole goth look didn't seem to be a big thing in this world, so maybe it was something else?

"Aw, no hello for me?" He purred tauntingly, "And we spent an entire evening together! I'm crushed." His lips twisted into a macarbe version of a smile, "Though I suppose I can't blame you. You were awfully distracted at the time."

It was his voice Lucy realized. That was what was familiar. She'd heard it before, and suddenly her eyes widened in horrified realization as she coupled the voice with his words, "You..."

He'd been the one to bring the phantom of her mother back. The one who had manipulated her, and tried to force her to build a gate.

He'd been the one to tear open that old wound and make it bleed again.

"I think she remembers me!" Midnight laughed cruelly, "Look at the fear on her face!"

"Lucy..." Erza half called, worried her friend would lose herself in the remembered horror of that night when suddenly something seemed to visibly snap in Lucy.

She ducked her head, her hair hiding her face and her shoulders shaking, "You... You made me think my mother was alive. You pulled something precious from my mind and used it to hurt me. All so I could open a stupid gate for you."

Midnight snorted derisively, "Am I supposed to care?"

"Maybe you don't. But I do." Lucy's head snapped back up with a look of utter fury on her face, "And you are going to _pay_ for what you've done!"

She slashed both of her prepared keys through the air, not even articulating the summoning as her magic flared in response to her rage. She just wanted him to go down, and she wanted him to go down _hard_.

"Lucy!" Erza exclaimed, worried about her friend as Taurus appeared before her, ready to lend his strength.

"Be careful, Midnight is extremely dangerous. He's not one to take light of," Erza warned. In fact she was tempted to step in herself, to fight off Midnight.

As far as battles went, this would be a difficult one for Lucy to overcome.

However, she was driven backwards by a pelting of angels, plowing through the earth and forming a solid barrier between her and Lucy.

She grit her teeth and gripped her sword at her side.

This was not good.

-::-

Lucy quickly found out Erza's words were very true.

No matter what Lucy attempted, Midnight was able to deflect every one of her attacks.

His magic seemed to make every blow warp around him, never coming anywhere close to touching his skin. It was infuriating, and Lucy had no idea what to do while he stood there gloating.

Midnight blasted her back with a particularly vicious blow after her latest attempt at sneaking up on him, slamming her back with a scattering of bruising across her spine.

She groaned as she saw him lifting a hand to catch Taurus under his chin with his fist, sending her poor spirit away the way he had come.

The shower of golden sparks as his gate closed was a mournful apology, and Lucy held his key, hoping he'd recover well.

It was strange though. Midnight had blasted her away but chose to strike Taurus...

"What's the matter?" Midnight drawled, "Don't tell me you're getting tired already. We're just getting started and you haven't even laid a hit on me yet!"

That was it.

That must have been what his power was.

Reflection. The power to distort and twist images around.

That was how Midnight was able to dip into her head and make her see such a terrible illusion at night.

Unfortunately, it also meant that no direct physical attack from her would ever work. Which meant it was time to resort to the indirect and give him something he _couldn't_ twist.

She snatched another key from her side as she staggered to her feet and slashed it through the air, "Open! Gate of the ram! Aries!"

"I-I'm sorry ma'am, did you call me?" Aries asked timidly as she appeared.

"Aries I need your best wool wall right now!" Lucy replied as she prayed to every god that even _might_ be listening that this would work.

"O-of course ma'am! I'll do my best!" The spirit replied and thrust out her hands at the slightly thrown Midnight, "Wool wall!"

Lucy didn't pause to appreciate the squawk of surprise that came from her opponent as he was engulfed in soft pink wool and shoved back. Instead she dug deeply into her reserves and shifted her stance as a magic circle flared at her feet.

 _"Survey the Heavens, Open the Heavens..._

 _All the stars, far and wide..."_

She chanted quickly, but precisely, as her entire focus was turned in towards the spell she'd been learning.

 _"Oh Tetrabiblos..._

 _I am the ruler of the stars..._

 _Aspect become complete..."_

Distantly she could hear Midnight raging against the puffy wool entangling him despite his magic, and swearing violently as he struggled to escape. However, Aries was proving to be tougher than she looked and was holding on a little longer to give her mistress more time.

 _"Open thy malevolent gate._

 _Oh 88 Stars of the heaven..._

 _Shine!"_

Aries glanced over her shoulder as she felt Lucy's magic struggling to maintain her presence as well as complete the spell, and hastily retreated beyond the gate. Lucy would need every scrap of power she had left to finish what she'd started.

Immediately Midnight tore through the wool that had been holding him, looking absolutely enraged over the indignity.

"I'm going to make you suffer for that!" He hissed furiously as he stalked towards her, unconcerned by the light show appearing around him.

He paused, however, when her eyes snapped open. They glowed brightly with golden light and the circle at her feet was reflected in them.

 _ **"Urano Metria!"**_

Taken off guard by the recent wooly attack, the spell caught Midnight square in the chest, pummeling him with the full weight of the stars.

Lucy had just enough time to thank Jellal for the extensive lessons he gave her in the art of the stars - even if it wasn't a spell he was able to learn himself.

She had just enough time to see Midnight drop, before her knees buckled and she dropped to the ground.

There was just enough sense to her head for her to feel arms catching her, and she opened her eyes to look up into red ones.

Rogue.

"What're... you?" She frowned, uncomprehending on where he had come from, or even why.

"Easy now," Rogue gently laid her to the ground, "We saw that light show a mile away. Thought you might be in trouble - and if anything happens to his queen, End would lose his mind."

She caught sight of Sting over Rogue's shoulder, and he flashed her a warm, sunny smile that reminded her of Natsu.

Natsu...!

"Looks like you had it well in hand though," Sting made his way over towards the body of Midnight, nudging him with a booted toe, "I see why Natsu likes you so much.

Lucy forced her body upright, even though it felt like lead and her vision was fogging around the corners. She grabbed Rogue by the collar, causing the dragon to squeak a bit in fright.

"Natsu... You have to find-"

Sting knelt beside them and gently caught Lucy's shoulders before she fell over, "You go." He told his brother, "Your shadows would probably be more help against that poison bastard. I'll stay here and make sure she gets to Wendy."

Rogue nodded and gently pried Lucy's hands off his collar before standing up, "Don't worry." He told Lucy softly, "Natsu will be fine."

Lucy smiled in relief and leaned back against Sting before passing out completely.

The two brothers shared a look before Rogue melted into the shadows and sped away. And a good thing he did too as a moment later the wall that had been separating Lucy from Erza blew apart where he'd been standing, and a frantic redhead stepped through it.

"Is Lucy alright?!" She asked worriedly as she took in Lucy's unconscious form.

"She's fine." Sting replied as he picked her up and called up his wings, "She's just magically exhausted. I'm going to take her to Wendy since she won't be fighting again today."

Erza nodded, a proud smile crossing her lips, "If she wakes before I arrive... tell her she did extremely well."

She, Angel, and indeed most of Magnolia, had seen Lucy's spell as it gathered strength and then unleashed. It had been an awesome display of magic for certain, and she was extremely proud of how much the blond had grown.

-::-

Meanwhile, Natsu climbed shakily back to his feet quite the distance away. Heavy pants dragged from his lungs.

Cobra landed in front of him, his dark violet wings open far enough to blot out the sky around the treeline. He was a small, fast dragon, but would still pose a trouble to Natsu in his current shape.

He had been getting better fighting in this body, his success over Motherglare was proof of that. But there was no denying he was profoundly better in his other form.

"What did you mean!" He demanded at Cobra, "Lucy and I are still bound together!"

The poison dragon blinked at Natsu, swinging his head down to peer closely at him.

His triangle-shaped snout reared back in roars of laughter again, his tail thumping down on the hard soil and packing it in tighter, "Oh this is _great_!"

"You really are an idiot, aren't you?" Cobra sneered at him, "It's a wonder you've been able to survive this long on power alone. But I'll let you in on a secret - Dragon's _can't_ be bound. Not for long anyway."

"Even if someone like Master Hades tried to manipulate a bond to make it more durable, as soon as some other kind of stabilized magic interrupted it once the bond levelled out, poof - it's gone," Cobra smirked.

His mouth spread open wider, needle-sharp fangs forming gleaming rows in front of Natsu's stunned face.

"The bond between you two broke probably after the first couple of weeks. You were just too weak to leave her side," Cobra laughed, "All you needed was a reason to stay and the bond gave you a good one."

Natsu's eyes were wide, his heart flopping in confusion and trepidation crawled down his spine. Fears he hadn't thought to face were beginning to crawl up to the surface, asserting themselves in his mind.

He could leave.

He could have left long ago.

No one had to let him stay anymore.

He shook his head.

"No, but... how is that? I couldn't transform?"

Cobra tried, and failed, to contain his glee, "This just gets _better and better_!" He cackled, "You really can't figure it out?" He smirked darkly, "You're forgetting something." He purred, "The strength of your own emotions! You can't change because you don't want to!"

He roared with laughter again and took another swipe at Natsu, thoroughly enjoying the game and wondering how much more he would enjoy it in his human form. It was debatable if he would even be able to speak coherently after laughing so hard.

This time, however, Natsu was not taken off guard by the swipe and was able to dodge it, "The hell do you mean I don't want to?!" He demanded, bursting into flame as he ran charging up to the dragon and leaping onto him like a flaming burr, "Tell me!"

"How should I know why you don't want to change?" Cobra yelped indignantly as he tried to shake Natsu off, "Just because I can hear everything about you doesn't mean I understand your problems!"

"Tell me!" Natsu repeated as he crawled higher, fear and anxiety twisting his gut and fueling his desperate need for answers, _"TELL ME!"_

He punched Cobra hard in a particularly soft spot, making him yelp again, in pain this time, and drop to the ground, "Like I know!" He snarled and turned to try and snap Natsu off, "For all I know you decided you liked it here or something!"

Natsu slid down Cobra's belly, fingers bracing himself on shiny purple scales as he pushed off with his heels and rocketed backwards on a jet of flame. He landed on the balls of his feet, jumping up past a plume of poison gas.

A trickle of sweat ran down his neck and soaked into his scarf, Cobra's beady eyes following every one of his motions.

"Ohhhh, I bet that's it!" Cobra sneered, sinking back on his haunches and looking superior. Natsu suppressed the rising urge to jump up and beat that purple face black and blue.

"You enjoy being around these mortals?" He cocked his head towards Natsu, listening invasively to the other's inner thoughts. It tormented Natsu in the worst way to know Cobra was peeking in on whatever was going on in his head. Violating his thoughts with his piercing magic. Laughter shook his scaled body, "I can hear it!"

"You desperately want to consider yourself a part of their family, but you can't _quite_ shake the niggling doubt that they are just tolerating you," Cobra's words cut Natsu, each one slicing deeper in his doubts, "Tolerating you because of the bond with Lucy. And now without it, they have no reason for wanting you to stay. You started off as their enemy after all!"

"You're right of course," Cobra purred, "The moment they realize you're unbound, they'll push you out like you were before. The great End is too evil to have untethered. Perhaps they will even kill you?"

"Shut up!" Natsu roared, finally losing his temper with the chatty dragon. He was enjoying this too much, breathing out the insecurities Natsu hadn't even actualized yet.

He jettisoned himself forward, headbutting underneath Cobra's jaw to snap the dragon's head backwards.

Claws caged around Natsu's body as Cobra recoiled, dragging him forwards as the dragon rolled onto its back.

"No nest, no friends, no family," Cobra snarled at Natsu, "Soon you'll sink into the darkness, just like me."

His eyes glinted in hard, reptilian slits, "Yes. Even _she'll_ turn against you."

"I can hear the whispers of fear in your heart," Cobra purred while Natsu cried out in pain as the poisoned claws ground his bones together in their grasp, " _'Not Lucy, Lucy wouldn't.'_ "

"Pathetic. For End to fall this far under the thrall of a human," Cobra purred as he rolled back up onto his hindquarters and slammed Natsu into the ground, "Perhaps I'll kill her first, since you seem resolute in your belief she won't turn from you."

"Maybe that will spark enough of your hatred to allow you to transform again," Cobra released a mocking laugh.

Natsu growled and snarled at Cobra despite the air being squeezed out of his lungs. He couldn't tell if it was from the dragon's weight on him or the poisonous words pouring from his maw, but either way he was having a hard time breathing, and just like before he couldn't shift the dragon's weight off him.

Cobra threw his head back and roared out another laugh, but it was choked off abruptly when a dark blast seemed to appear out of nowhere and nailed him solidly in the neck.

"What the?" Cobra blinked, stunned that he'd been taken by surprise, and that it had been a dragon's roar that hit him. Granted it wasn't strong enough to do more than sting, but it _really_ stung.

He glared around, inhaling for his own attack against whoever had joined their fight, unnerved by his inability to hear their thoughts. What kind of magic could do that? More importantly, what kind of dragon could do that? Nothing had ever been able to even temporarily evade his hearing before.

He listened intently for any kind of tell, and whipped around at the sound of rushing wind just in time for an explosion of sound to slam into him as a ebony dragon materialized out of the shadows and rammed into him.

The sudden impact sent him flying off of Natsu, the other dragon immediately moving to stand protectively over the wheezing fire drake, "Sorry I'm late Natsu." Rogue growled softly, glaring harshly at Cobra, "It took us a few minutes to regroup."

He bared his fangs at Cobra, more than willing to protect his drake, but ready to move aside at a moment's notice as well. He knew very well how territorial dragons were about fights. He and Sting were rare exceptions to being able to share their battles and kills.

That wouldn't stop him from giving Natsu the moment he needed to recover though.

"Who's late?" Natsu grunted as he sat up, his fist rubbing against his bruised jaw, "I had him on the ropes!"

He sprang to his feet and rolled a shoulder, purposefully ignoring Rogue's dubious look.

"How're the others doing?" He asked, his body flaring with heat. He was concerned with how everything was at the ruined guildhall. His hearing was sharp, but all he could make out from as far as Cobra had smacked him were the sounds of battle.

And the occasional swear word.

But that was Fairy Tail, so he didn't think too much on it.

"We're fine." Rogue reported with a quiet growl, and smirked slightly, "You may be pleased to know your queen faced Midnight and won."

Both Natsu and Cobra swiveled to stare at him in surprise, "Say what?" The poison dragon rumbled in shock, and Rogue's smirk widened.

"You heard me. She defeated Midnight with a powerful celestial spell. All of Magnolia witnessed it." He glanced at Natsu's worried expression, "Don't worry, she's fine. Sting's guarding her, and will take her to Wendy."

Relief coursed through Natsu at the news, and it was followed immediately by a surge of fierce pride. Lucy had beaten that asshole Midnight! All three of his sides purred in dark pleasure at the knowledge she'd gotten her revenge and proved her strength. He'd found a good queen.

"So what if your stupid princess was able to beat down Midnight!" Cobra snarled as he prepared another attack, "That doesn't change anything!"

Natsu rolled out of the way of the dragon's attack, fire licking up off his shoulders and his eyes focused on the dragon in front of him.

"Rogue, go back and give Gajeel a hand. Make sure they don't take Lucy," He didn't pull his gaze from Cobra, "This one is mine."

Rogue hesitantly flicked his tail, unsure if this was a wise plan. Considering how Cobra seemed unable to sense his attacks until they were directly on him, it seemed Rogue assisting in this fight from the shadows was the ideal plan.

However...

There was a strange, warning set to Natsu's shoulders.

"Fine then, but you better shout if you need help," Rogue grumbled and backed off to do as Natsu requested.

Sometimes he didn't understand Natsu, or his thirst to fight. But in the end he really didn't have to get it. He supposed Cobra had made this battle personal.

With Rogue disappearing, Natsu's fingers clenched into the dirt, his lips pulled back in an angry snarl. He waited for his companion to leave, Cobra allowing the departure as well, seemingly preferring his chances of victory when there was just one opponent.

"You said before I was happy? And that was what was stopping me from transforming?" Natsu asked, "My hatred lets me transform?"

"Then let's give it a test why don't we?" Natsu snarled, scales rippling over his cheeks and around his eyes, " _ **Because you pissed me off plenty**_!"

Cobra's eyes widened in alarm at the sight of scales appearing on Natsu. Shit. That was not good. That was not good at all!

He reared back, his alarm growing as he realized that Natsu's rage had managed to consume him to the point there were no thoughts in his head to give away. He hastily sucked in a breath, "Poison dragon roar!" He bellowed, unleashing lethal poison where the partially transformed Natsu was standing.

The keyword of course being 'was.'

Natsu had dodged the blast the moment before impact.

He hissed a little as a few drops of poison stung his scales a little, but that didn't slow him down any as he leapt up onto Cobra's tail and raced nimbly up it.

There was no way he was going to let this cocky lizard best him!

He bared his fangs as his fists were engulfed in swirling flame, "Fire dragon wing attack!" He roared, slamming it in point blank into Cobra's back.

The poison dragon roared in agony, and decided he was too big and stationery a target right now. His ability to hear didn't count for anything if Natsu was able to run around on him at will.

"Cubelios!" He roared, knowing his friend would hear and come as fast as she could. In the meantime...

He snapped at Natsu, forcing him to leap away, kind of like a really irritating flea, and began transforming down. This was the more risky option, but it was better than being a sitting target while Natsu took advantage of their size difference.

He smirked as Cubelios flew under him in time to catch him, and gently coiled around him until he had secure footing.

"Let's see how well you do now that our sizes are more equal." He smirked.

Cobra barely had any chance to finish his taunt before Natsu was on him again. Nothing echoed in his head for Cobra to spy on, so all he could do was strike as Cubelios defended, throwing off Natsu's initial strike with her tail.

Flinging out a talon, he swiped at Natsu, who charged on ahead, heedless of the snake. Stars exploded in Cobra's vision as Natsu slammed his head right into the other dragon's.

Thankfully Cubelio's shifted to catch Cobra, but Natsu wasn't stopping, a roar of fire blasting an inch from the poison dragon.

Only the echoing sensation of anger pushed against Cobra's ears as he tried to listen to something _anything_ within Natsu's skull.

Instinctual rage-?

No. Something worse.

Determination.

It wasn't the raw fury End was known for. Sure, there was anger there, but there was something more.

Something Cobra had no way of recognizing.

And something Cobra realized, he had no way of defeating.

The roar that ripped from Natsu made Cobra's ears pop, a tearing pain that lanced up his head and blinded him. In that moment he became aware of Natsu's full status as a drake. The deafening volume of Natsu's roars shook the earth and could be heard from one end of Isghar to the other. The tightly controlled power in his attacks, the sheer immensity of Natsu's magic that bloomed over and smothered Cobra's in his rage. Even in a form locked by Natsu's own hesitations, there was no denying what he was.

A drake.

And while Cobra had his fun earlier, it was clear Natsu was done _playing_. He tapped into that strength, that wicked fuel that all drakes had simmering under the surface. Natsu's was different, his reservoirs of magic deeper and darker than any other drake Cobra had ever seen before. No longer were his thoughts readable or an open book to Cobra.

Natsu was playing for keeps now.

His eyes widened a split second before Natsu flipped over onto his hands, fingers curled into Cubelio's scales for support and slammed the heel of his foot directly into Cobra's cheek.

What _was_ Natsu?

As his vision began to blacken around the edges, Cubelio's panicking to try and catch him, all he could see was Natsu's flaming figure roaring out to the sky above him.

He was some kind of- "...monster."

* * *

 _ **Kytrin would like to tell you all THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH FOR ALL THE BIRTHDAY WISHES! You all were INCREDIBLE! Your review responses are in your inboxes! :D**_

 _ **Here is your sneak peek guys! You definitely earned it and then some! You guys were so incredible! :'D**_

* * *

 _Cobra groaned softly as he came to._

 _What had happened? He remembered fighting End, taunting him, but then it all blurred together. And what was wrong with his hearing? He could hear sounds, but they were all jumbled together like the drone of buzzing bees._

 _He shook his head a little, and immediately regretted it as his brain howled in protest to the sudden movement. However, it did alert him to the myriad bruises and aches he felt across his body. He recognized the aches and pains of a beating well enough to know he'd received a major one. Which probably explained why he was so disoriented._

 _Well, that and the fact he hadn't received a beating on this kind of scale since he was a kid. It was unnerving to know that he'd gotten one now._

 _He cracked open his eyes and blinked confusedly at the very stern looking Erza and Jellal standing over him._

 _That was when it all came rushing back._

 _"You're fortunate Natsu didn't kill you." Erza snapped, her anger barely held in check, "And you're equally fortunate Jellal convinced us capturing you would be more beneficial in the long run."_

 _She glared at him sharply, and he caught the stray thought that five more minutes under Natsu's attacks would've seen him dead._


	43. Flowers for Algernon

_**Act 3**_

* * *

 _ **43**_

 _ **Flowers for Algernon**_

 _"I don't know what's worse: to not know what you are and be happy, or to become what you've always wanted to be, and feel alone."_

― Daniel Keyes _ **, Flowers for Algernon**_

* * *

Cobra groaned softly as he came to.

What had happened? He remembered fighting End, taunting him, but then it all blurred together. And what was wrong with his hearing? He could hear sounds, but they were all jumbled together like the drone of buzzing bees.

He shook his head a little, and immediately regretted it as his brain howled in protest to the sudden movement. However, it did alert him to the myriad bruises and aches he felt across his body. He recognized the aches and pains of a beating well enough to know he'd received a major one. Which probably explained why he was so disoriented.

Well, that and the fact he hadn't received a beating on this kind of scale since he was a kid. It was unnerving to know that he'd gotten one now.

He cracked open his eyes and blinked confusedly at the very stern looking Erza and Jellal standing over him.

That was when it all came rushing back.

"You're fortunate Natsu didn't kill you." Erza snapped, her anger barely held in check, "And you're equally fortunate Jellal convinced us capturing you would be more beneficial in the long run."

She glared at him sharply, and he caught the stray thought that five more minutes under Natsu's attacks would've seen him dead.

It was a sobering thought. Especially as he remembered that point blank roar to the face.

He glanced around, and was both startled and not surprised to find the rest of his guild being carefully guarded by other members of Fairy Tail. Though Angel was getting less guarding and more a very thorough, and loud, talking to from a woman who just had to be her little sister Yukino.

He was suddenly glad he wasn't part of _that_ mess at least.

He frowned a little as he realized something was missing though. Something very near and dear to his heart.

"Where's Cubelios?" He demanded, sitting up abruptly and fear pulsing through him. He didn't care how injured he was going to find out what had happened to his best friend if he had to crawl out the door.

"Cubelios?" Erza asked, but Jellal shifted a bit.

"She's there." He answered calmly, gesturing to a bed where a young woman with purple hair was resting.

"You're fortunate twice over Cobra." He continued mildly, "By myself I wouldn't have been able to remove that curse from her, but with Master Makarov's help we were able to restore her."

He met the poison dragon's eyes intently, "Do you think Brain or any of the others of the Baram Alliance would have done the same?"

Cobra stared at the woman transfixed, unable to think beyond the moment. She was laying there, human and in such an unfamiliar shape he hardly knew what he was looking at.

But her scent. Her scent was the same.

The woman, whoever she was - she was Cubelios.

He hardly even knew what to think.

Would he finally be able to hear her voice?

He shook his head roughly, trying to regain his footing despite the sudden shock to his system. Jellal had done a good job disarming him, but that came to him as no surprise. The man was a smooth talker, and was usually capable of coaxing even a wild dog to his side if he spoke long enough to it.

He had to admit to a certain amount of truth in what Jellal said though - sometimes Cobra thought he heard whispers in Brain's head. A cruel murmurer that barely evaded his powers.

He tsk'd and scowled aggressively at Jellal, a slow smirk sliding across his face in challenge.

"So what do you want?" He demanded, "You got me nice and trussed up here, as well as the rest of my guild. You think you'll be able to hold us?"

Jellal looked unphased, his expression cool on Cobra, "Perhaps not, but we hardly need to keep you here forever."

Cobra frowned, not trusting that one bit, but aware that Jellal, as a telepath himself, was one of the few he would not be able to listen in on even if he had the energy to do so. Which he really didn't at the moment.

Hearing thoughts ate up magic power, unlike his regular hearing, and at the moment he was mostly tapped out. Nor could he pick up any significant tells from either person before him.

A distinct disadvantage.

"What do you mean?" He growled, perhaps more sharply that he should under the circumstances, but not really caring, "Our goal to capture the celestial wizard won't change." He smirked, "And you know Hades will eventually get here as well even if we fail."

"We're aware." Jellal answered mildly, though his eyes narrowed and sharpened to steel, "And we're also aware that you want Lucy to open a gate for you. Presumably to her homeworld."

"But you don't know why." Cobra smirked, starting to enjoy this, "How amusing seeing _you_ in the dark for a change."

"And how sad to see you still groping about in the darkness like the slave you still are." Jellal replied, equal parts cutting and sad, "You don't even realize you and the others are still chained down in Zeref's darkness."

"What do you know of chains?" Cobra snapped, and Jellal's expression darkened.

"I know more of chains than you can comprehend." He growled softly, but his anger was palpable enough to silence the entire infirmary, "I was there remember? I know _exactly_ what it was like. I lost my sanity to it, and led you all along that path."

Cobra bit back the acidic taste in his mouth, boiling up similarly to bile. His stomach churned and he glared at Jellal. That was not one fact he was about to dispute with him. He remembered the Tower all too well.

And following Jellal after it? It was much too long a time to count.

Still he said nothing as Jellal moved in closer, Erza's hand resting on the back of his arm to pull him back should she need to. For the moment it was lax, her fingers a light, comforting caress against his jacket.

"What's it going to be Erik?" Jellal's voice cut low, "Tell us what business the Baram Alliance has to enter a world with no magic."

"Find your true freedom with your friends," Jellal encouraged, his voice dropping. Despite the softness, Cobra could hear him clearly. Jellal held that much power in his words alone, he could captivate an audience.

Cobra's lip curled in disgust over the flagrant way Jellal used his given name, but dismissed it for the time.

"I don't have friends!" Cobra snapped at Jellal, "Don't confuse allies with whatever excuse you have!"

He was silenced a moment later, when Jellal's hand rose and pointed over to where Cubelios was still asleep, curled on her side and resting.

"Are you certain?"

Cobra froze, as if struck, as he gazed at the sight of his beloved friend back in her human form and smiling softly in her sleep. His heart twisted painfully and began pounding as he realized Jellal's point.

She was his friend.

She had been the only one he had in that wretched place before the rebellion.

And she was the only one who had stuck with him no matter what afterwards.

He remembered, vividly, the way she'd curled around him protectively when he'd collapsed in pained exhaustion as he'd dealt with the lacrima implanted into him and later learned how to use his new magic.

He remembered his prayer and how no matter what he, or any one else, had done he was unable to hear her voice. But now, suddenly, he knew he would. Jellal had answered his prayer without a second thought despite who he was and him being the enemy.

It made his heart twist even more.

He growled softly, his fists clenching painfully as he considered his options. The Baram Alliance, as a whole, meant nothing to him. He cared about Cubelios and, perhaps, his guild. That was all.

He glared suspiciously at the man he'd once followed, but found nothing but patient truth. It was different, and yet the same, to the convictions that had burned in him before.

Could he trust it?

Did he even have a choice?

Cubelios was his weakness, Cobra couldn't just ignore her now. She had been a snake for so long, and if she was going to be in these people's care...

It wasn't a hard decision after all.

His belief had nothing to do with it.

Sucking in a breath around his tightening lungs, Cobra lifted his eyes to Jellal's frustratingly calm gaze. Always in control, even in the most dire or stressful of situations. It made sense he was a leader.

"You want to know our motivation in the celestial mage's homeworld?" Cobra asked, his voice rough and low. He leaned forward slowly, a hand bracing against the cot's side.

"Nothing. We have no reason or purpose to go there," He said quietly, "We would be powerless there."

Erza frowned at him, growing frustrated by Cobra's spreading grin. Even while he was complying, he could at least irritate them.

"What's the point of opening the gate then?" She asked, an edge to her voice to show her dwindling patience.

Sensing he could only push her but so far, Cobra huffed.

"You really can't think of a single reason why we'd want to open a door to that place?" He asked her, "Can't think of one person the dark guilds would go through so much trouble for?"

Recognition flashed over their faces in an instant, Jellal's face losing every ounce of color. In fact he looked almost as if the ground were collapsing under his feet.

And perhaps it was, Cobra thought with grim satisfaction. Jellal had suffered some of the most at his hands he supposed.

"Zeref," Erza's voice trembled, anger and fear boiling within her.

Cobra nodded.

"Natsu didn't kill him, he was just banished through the gate to the other side," Cobra replied.

"It's been hundreds of years though," Jellal protested. The reality of Cobra's words seemed too hard for him to process. "There is no magic in that world. How could he still be alive?"

"There's magic within all of us," Cobra snapped back at Jellal, "You of all people should know the incredible amount contained within Zeref. His magic goes towards sustaining his life, as all of ours would if we'd go into that world - but Zeref has such a limitless power, he has been able to use traces of it. Enough to gather himself an army on both sides of the gate."

"For what reason?" Jellal demanded, "What purpose does Zeref have to come back to this world?"

Cobra smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. A lazy shrug dragged from his shoulders and he tilted his head back.

"Who knows," He looked up at the ceiling overhead. Cracks in the roof were evident, and he could see the bare lines of the sky showing through.

"Maybe he just wanted to come home?"

"No." Jellal growled softly, his thoughts spinning urgently as he tried to piece together the situation, "No. There's something else there. Zeref wouldn't simply want to come back. It would start another war."

His eyes narrowed, "There has to be something more to it."

Something that might begin and end with Natsu himself.

After all, he'd been the one to betray his brother and fight against him to help save the world. It wasn't unreasonable that Zeref might want revenge for that. Certainly it explained the strange people after Lucy though.

She would be the only one capable of opening the gate to allow passage. And he knew from experience that Zeref didn't necessarily need her willing co-operation.

She was too old to be manipulated as he was, but possession was still entirely possible. And if the circumstances were set up right it wouldn't even be necessary. She would open the gate if it meant saving the people she cared about.

It was one of her greatest qualities, and in this case her greatest weakness.

He stood up, "We need to tell Natsu and Lucy." He told Erza as she also straightened.

"Yes." She agreed, "You take care of that while I inform the master."

Jellal nodded, and headed out, aware that Sting and Rogue were watching them intently. No doubt with their dragonslayer hearing they'd heard every word spoken. In fact, it was unlikely anyone had missed their conversation.

However the light dragon didn't make a move to follow. But then, he had his hands full trying to comfort his quietly sobbing wife.

He glanced at Rogue, but the dark dragon just shook his head minutely, and he nodded. They would give him a chance to tell Natsu and Lucy in private before doing whatever it was nests did in situations like this.

Jellal was relieved, however, when he glimpsed him slipping away to speak quietly with Gajeel. Good. Natsu would surely need his nest around him after this revelation.

He picked his way outside where Natsu was helping with the cleanup and reconstruction despite Lucy's light scolding for him to take it easier after his fight.

"Natsu." He called as he moved up beside the blond, and beckoned him over, "I have something to tell you. Privately."

Natsu glared at Jellal, a beam over his shoulder and a deep scowl on his face. It didn't seem like he was a good mood to begin with, but it seemed more grumpy than angry. Which meant he was just pouting over Lucy trying to make him ease up his workload. Which just made it all the harder.

"What's up?" Natsu asked, dropping the beam in a pile and hooking his foot under a broom to kick it up to his hand. He leaned it across his shoulder blades, his wrists curled over the wood.

Wandering over, he must have seen something on Jellal's face that made his brow crease. Because suddenly the dragonslayer looked very worried.

"What's with the creepy look Jellal?" Natsu asked.

Sighing, Jellal beckoned for Natsu to follow him. Lucy looked as if she was going to hang back, but Jellal shook his head

"No Lucy," He gave her a grim look, "You need to hear what comes next too."

"It's about the information we got from Cobra," Jellal clarified.

A glower began to darken Natsu's face over that news. He had been in a mood since his fight with Cobra, but if there was something bothering him Natsu chose not to share it.

Jellal pulled them with him towards a secluded area of the construction site.

Once he was certain they were alone, he took a breath and turned towards the two. Natsu was jiggling his foot in the earth, his impatient tapping a clear sign of his dwindling attention span.

While Lucy on the other hand remained worried and attentive.

Straight forward was the best way to go when dealing with these two.

So Jellal told them what Cobra had said, watching as Natsu's entire body turned to stone before his very eyes.

His eyes flashed red with anger, in a barest hint of demonic fury lashing up to the surface before it died down. Natsu looked to be visibly struggling with himself.

"Cobra is lying!" Natsu snarled, unable to believe what Jellal had reported, "Zeref is dead! I killed him myself!"

Lucy immediately curled her hands over his, rubbing gently to try and get him to relax the fists he'd balled them into, "Natsu.." She soothed, meeting his flashing red eyes fearlessly, "Don't discount this."

She saw his angry gaze re-direct at her and his mouth open, "I know!" She continued hastily, "I know what you told me. I can't think of how anyone could survive that either. But what if he fell through a gate when you hit him? You know the medicine in that world is different. It's possible, however remote, that he was found and saved."

She frowned a little grimly herself, "And you can't deny there's something really weird going on there. Those creepy guys that chased me, and how they showed up at my place when we went back?"

She unconsciously released him to rub her shoulder, a gesture that prompted a small, involuntary, whine from him.

"They somehow know about me. I haven't been able to figure out how, but they know. If Zeref is the reason why..." She shivered a little in horror.

She'd learned more about the Black Wizard Zeref than she ever wanted to know, and she knew she was only scratching the surface, but any man who could turn his little brother into a demon just to bring him back to life rated cold dread in her book.

No matter that it was because of that she had found Natsu and love.

It took a certain kind of mind to even think of something like that let alone pull it off.

And she wasn't interested in getting close to that kind of person.

She wrapped her arms around Natsu, "I'm not saying we should trust Cobra." She murmured into his chest, "But we can't ignore the possibility."

Natsu huffed out a shaky breath, his anger making his body tremble. Zeref, alive? Every part of him wanted to refute it.

But Lucy's soft reminders to being attacked, and the very fresh memories of her covered in blood doused his rage.

He couldn't deny it just because it seemed impossible from every angle.

Natsu nodded stiffly. He had no desire to see Cobra and question him for himself. The words the poison dragon spat, the reminder of what he was - what he was lacking...

What he feared.

He couldn't think of all that!

He cracked his knuckles, "I wanna know how he knows."

"And I bet I know the people who can give us our answers," Natsu growled, his eyes flashing over to Jellal.

Lucy squeezed his shoulder and gave Natsu a very worried look.

"Why do I get the impression I'm not going to like the words that come out of your mouth next?" Lucy said dryly.

She was favored with a goofy grin from Natsu, and it made her spirits lighten for just a moment before they came crushing down again.

"You're not!" He said cheerfully, "Because it's time to knock down the last door in the Baram Alliance."

"Tartaros," Jellal, quirked an eyebrow at Natsu. An exasperated smile was on his face. Head shaking, he turned his face towards the town. It was mostly untouched from the battle, and they hoped it would stay that way.

"You want to open the doors to the underworld," Jellal eyed Natsu.

The dragonslayer smirk turned decisively wicked.

"No. I want to tear them down."

* * *

 _ **We knew some of you guys would have read What's a Witch, and would know of the bond Mslead has in that fic. So that's what we like to call a Red Herring to throw you guys off the trail a bit. Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. As usual, your responses are in your inboxes if you've signed in!**_

 _ **GUEST REVIEW RESPONSES**_

 **Animallover** \- Cobra is a dragon well versed in slavery and dark magic. He's been around just as long as Natsu, so he knows information he wouldn't! Yeah I missed having Natsu being dragged around by the nose, but it was better this way. Cobra isn't a nice character, but what can we say? He's got a ways to go on his own before he redeems himself.

 _ **Sorry guys! No Sneak Peek this time! We didn't hit the mark! I imagine holidays and final exams have been killer :D**_


	44. The Secret Garden

_**Act 3  
HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND MERRY CHRISTMAS! **_

* * *

_**44**_

 _ **The Secret Garden**_

 _"It made her think that it was curious how much nicer a person looked when he smiled. She had not thought of it before."_  
― Frances Hodgson Burnett _, **The Secret Garden**_

* * *

It turned out that Natsu declaring he was going to tear down the doors to Tartarus and actually doing so were two very different things.

It had taken Jellal approximately half a second to ask where Tartarus was and less than that for Natsu's face to go blank as reality hit. Jellal had shaken his head and gone to recruit some help to find it. It was, unfortunately, not something he could ask Cobra about. Even if the poison dragonslayer knew, which was debatable, the information would be useless thanks to the demon base always being on the move.

That had left Lucy and Natsu without much to do, so she'd taken the opportunity to sneak off and take him home. The guild rebuilding could wait a bit longer.

"Are you alright?" She asked once she'd gotten them home and him settled in their bed for some badly needed alone time.

It was pretty clear to her he wasn't, but except for snuggling up to him, which she was more than happy to do, she couldn't quite decipher what was going on in his head. Though she could guess quite a bit given the information they'd just been given.

Still, she wasn't going to push her thoughts and opinions onto him. It would be better if he talked about it. So for now she would wait.

That didn't stop her from softly placing a comforting kiss on him though.

It wasn't just Zeref though. Sure, he was a whole new slew of problems Natsu didn't know how to deal with, but he wasn't the only one.

Cobra's words whispered in his mind, fueling that ever dubious voice in the back of his head. The one that breathed doubt and fear Natsu was too weak to overcome.

The one that told him this was all a lie. That he couldn't - didn't belong here.

He sighed into Lucy's soft lips, feeling his hesitation and fears melt away for the time being. How rare was it for him to simply feel with her?

How could he doubt this? Doubt her?

Angling his head, he nosed into her cheek and nipped at her plump mouth, fangs tugging lightly on her bottom lip. Every motion was slow. Unhurried kisses, comforting and gentle, were exchanged between them, the exhaustion from their battles drawing energy from their limbs.

This was fine though - in fact it was perfect.

It was just what Natsu needed.

He smiled into her kiss, letting Lucy chase away the shadows plaguing his mind. This was enough right?

So he could tell her what Cobra told him. He could tell her the bond was gone.

His stomach suddenly twisted at the thought and he pulled away from Lucy, tension coiling back in his shoulders and at the base of his neck.

Lucy's confused eyes met his, her hand smoothing down the hard planes of his chest, fingers tangling into his scarf. The other lifted to press into his cheek, cupping the curve of his jaw.

It was a touch so gentle it made his heart ache with the desire to tell her. But his own fear was too great.

Natsu felt disgusted with himself, unable to put to words what was bothering him.

Unable to trust what they built.

"It's okay," Lucy assured him, her eyes meeting his, a smooth thumb pressing into his hot skin.

What was okay? Did she mean Zeref?

He opened his mouth, but she shook his head, "Don't push it Natsu."

The chide came soft, her hand smoothing through the locks of his hair, pushing his bangs back and scooping around to cradle the back of his head, pulling him into a hug. It was both awkward, but comforting.

And once again he felt that knot loosening in his stomach.

"I'm not sure what's going on that's bothering you, but that doesn't matter," She breathed in his ear.

Slowly, his body went lax in her arms, his hands resting at her waist, "You'll talk to me whenever you're ready. Okay?"

The warmth of gratitude filled Natsu, and he felt some more of the pressure on his shoulders lessen.

He snorted a little, bumping his nose against her neck, "Lucy aren't you the one that's got three dark guilds breathing down your neck?"

"One of those guilds is gone now thank you very much," Lucy replied saucily, leaning back enough on her heels to give him a wicked smirk.

Natsu rolled his eyes and leaned over to yank the pillow out from under her, causing her to cackle when she went flailing down back on top of him.

His arm caught her around the middle and he gave her a mischievous smile, "You're not so hard to catch."

Lucy giggled softly at him and shifted into a more comfortable position, "Not for you." She purred and pulled him into a deeper kiss than before.

Alone time was still a rare and precious thing for them to get, and she wasn't about to pass up the chance now. Even if all they did was kiss and cuddle she was happy. She just wanted to be near him without Happy or anyone else looking at them.

Natsu smiled in response as she began working her way along his mouth towards his jaw and nuzzled him. So that was what she had on her mind huh?

Well he was more than willing to oblige.

Ever since that glorious night the least little thing she did tended to ignite a fire in him he had difficulty in keeping hidden, and suddenly it seemed like a great idea to at least show her how much she meant to him.

He was better at actions anyway.

So he curled his free hand around her face, pausing to admire the beauty in it, before pulling her into a sweet and tender kiss, "Thanks Lucy." He murmured, though he wasn't entirely sure what he was thanking her for exactly.

It just seemed like the right thing to say. And the answering smile from her told him he might've gotten it right for a change.

He smoothed his hands gently down her sides, enjoying the feel of her curves and cocked his head slightly at her, a raised eyebrow asking just what she wanted.

She just grinned at him, somehow both saucy and loving, "Whatever you want to give me."

He pressed his mouth against the valley of her breasts, just under her collarbone. Her skin trembled beneath his curious lips, the unique flavor of Lucy coating his tongue and filling the back of his throat.

His heart flopped in his chest, like a beached sea creature. Slim fingers ran through his hair, drawing a lazy and contented growl from Natsu's chest.

Slowly his hands skimmed along the curve of her waist. Warmth buzzed under his hands wherever he touched. Clever hands slid along his shoulders, Lucy's slim arms curling around him.

He looked up at her, a smile gentling his face as he bent up and kissed her.

He slid a warm hand under Lucy's shirt, letting his palm flatten against her stomach. It did him the favor of drawing a surprised gasp from Lucy, one Natsu quickly swallowed.

Deepening the kiss, Natsu rearranged their bodies so he could lean Lucy back. He pulled away enough to look into her eyes, his arm snaking around her waist when he laid down next to her.

Perhaps laying them down hadn't been the best course of action though, because as soon as he sprawled down next to Lucy, the exhaustion of the day began to catch up.

Lucy's eyelids were already drooping, trying desperately to stay awake in their new position. Natsu barely managed to smother a laugh when she let out a jaw cracking yawn directly in his face. She managed to hold up a dainty hand to try and block it from Natsu.

However it was still contagious, and Natsu let out a wide yawn right after her, his limbs beginning to feel heavy.

Lucy snorted as Natsu opted not to cover his mouth at all when he yawned, "Real nice." She teased

Natsu rolled his eyes and leaned over her body, snapping off the lights on their bedside.

"Whatever, you started it," he grumbled.

He sank back down next to Lucy, cupping the back of her head in his palm. Natsu couldn't help but marvel at her. She was so fragile. Not as breakable as most humans, but still easy to snap. But the fragility of her physical form belied the power that surged beneath that sweet exterior.

And Natsu supposed... he didn't just mean her magic either.

Lucy's lips found his in the dark and he returned the kiss, shifting their bodies so her arms would wrap around his torso and his could mantle around her smaller frame.

As sleep encroached on them, interrupting all their half-baked plans for the evening, Natsu couldn't help but think this was far more intimate than anything else they could have done.

There was something so personal about holding and being held by someone.

Something Natsu knew instinctively he wouldn't tolerate from anyone but Lucy and the rare exception.

As he closed his eyes, sleep overtook him, an echoing voice calling in the back of his head. The one which always went ignored.

 _'Good night Natsu...'_

* * *

Lucy slowly came to as the early morning light filtered through the curtains. She didn't really want to get up though. Despite still being in yesterday's clothes she was warm and comfortable and snuggled up to Natsu, and that was more than enough incentive for her to not do anything except smile sleepily and snuggle closer.

Her dragonslayer, it seemed, had the same idea as he tightened his grip. However, his hands shifted a little when he did and one came to curl around her butt. A flush of heated pleasure coursed through her at the contact, and Lucy sleepily kissed his neck in approval.

Natsu purred softly in his sleep, his dreams of battling hordes of enemies shifting into something considerably warmer as his dream Lucy started kissing his neck.

He growled happily at the attention, heat melting his insides, and let his hands roam curiously while she kissed him, his own kisses peppering her shoulder.

He'd explored her before of course, but after that one night they'd taken it slow and even then he hadn't had a chance to really study her. So he was more than happy to take the shift in his dream to exploring her.

He didn't realize that outside his dream his actions were being mirrored on the real Lucy. She certainly didn't mind though as she gasped softly, still not entirely awake herself, and arched into his warm touch.

The sound of her quiet gasps pressed into his ear and slowly dragged him into consciousness. To say he was pleasantly surprised to find his arms filled with a pliant Lucy was an understatement. Her lips were skating across the thick scar on his neck, chin buried in his scarf as her mouth moved in lazy circles.

"Morning," She mumbled, limp against him and not looking like she was moving any time soon. Natsu hummed in response, a shiver of pleasure running down his spine at the gentle way her breath fanned against his hot skin.

Natsu's hand flattened against the curve of her rear, crawling up her bowing back. He smiled sleepily, and leaned into her, nuzzling the side of her head with his cheek.

"'m tired..." His hand drifted upwards under Lucy's shirt in unhurried circles, his thumb brushing slow, inquisitive strokes against the sides of her breasts. Natsu's cheek lifted at how Lucy's body twitched on top of his at the sensation, her hand fanning out towards his waist.

"Me too..." She snuggled into his neck, but her fingertips travelled nonetheless through the hard ridges of his chest and sides. Her touch, as light as a butterfly's wings, fluttered down his muscled thighs, under the bend of his knee and back up.

Tension slowly heated in Natsu's body, a tired smile lifting his cheeks and his eyes slid closed. Lucy's touch deliberately ghosted over his groin, sliding up through the folds of clothing he was still wearing. Not that it was much.

He hadn't bothered to change after his fight with Cobra, the clothing he wore was mostly in tatters now so Lucy had enough freedom to map out wherever she wanted to go.

The early morning light shone through the window and warmed them, Lucy sliding up against his body to capture his lips in a sleepy kiss.

His hands braced her thighs as they melted into one another, simply enjoying one another before the rest of the world woke up.

Lucy hummed softly with pleasure as they continued exploring each other slowly and gently. The heat gradually built between them as they moved against one another. She liked this. A lot.

She'd always been a bit of a hedonist. The pleasures of life were meant to be savored after all, and despite his high energy it seemed Natsu was rather enjoying it too.

She smiled lazily at him and dipped her head to start trailing her lips over his chest only to jump a mile when Happy suddenly flew into the window. The loud thump jarred them out of their early morning explorations rather suddenly, and Natsu was turning his head towards the glass in worry.

Lucy toppled off Natsu with a frightened yelp, while Natsu himself shoved the window open and gently collected his dazed flying kitten.

"You alright little buddy?" He asked in concern, shifting to hide his current state from the small Exceed and trying not to laugh as Lucy buried her face in his shoulder. He could hear her softly swearing under her breath at Happy for scaring her so badly, and her sulking that their fun was interrupted.

It was quite hilarious as she couldn't seem to decide what to focus her irritation on.

"Aye!" Happy chirped with a grin as he shook off the effects of his collision, "Sorry I didn't come home Natsu." He said sheepishly, "I fell asleep at the guild."

Natsu grinned at Happy, smoothing his thumb over his fuzzy head. He didn't know why Lucy was all but hiding behind him at the moment, but it was still funny.

"Are you sure you didn't stay behind on purpose?" Lucy smirked at Happy from over Natsu's shoulder. Her chin settled on his warm skin and she favored the kitten a sly look.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Happy said shiftily, settling himself in the crook of Natsu's elbow. He was giving Lucy a falsely innocent look neither of them bought for even a moment.

"You sure you weren't hanging around the guild to try and play with Carla?" Lucy teased, causing Natsu's eyebrows to climb up into his hairline.

"Ohoho, is that so?" Natsu's grin split into something distinctly wicked.

"You liiiiiiiike her?" Natsu trilled at Happy, causing the kitten's blue cheeks to purple under his fur.

Happy let out a giddy sigh before giving Natsu a strange look, and pressed his paws to either side of his head, "Aye!"

"Carla is the prettiest kitten ever!" Happy sighed dreamily, already being swept off in day dreams of fish and the proper feline.

Lucy giggled at that, mollified now that her heart wasn't pounding from fright, "How cute!" She teased and scratched Happy gently behind an ear as she moved out from behind Natsu.

"I'm going to get a shower." She told them as she slid out of bed, but leaned over to pull Natsu into a lingering kiss as she did.

"You liiiiiiiiiike him!" Happy sang, hoping to get a rise out of Lucy.

Unfortunately for his plans, Lucy just smirked over her shoulder at him, "Well yeah!" She exclaimed, tossing them both a wink before vanishing into the bathroom.

Natsu watched her go, an odd fluttering in his chest at the words she spoke so easily and at how the door closed behind her. His eyes followed, long after the shower was running.

The guilt and worry from the previous night niggled distantly in the back of his mind, but he was able to ignore it in favor of the warmth making his heart feel all fuzzy.

It was strange, but he thought...

That warmth that suffused him. Her smile and her inviting touch. Did he-

Happy's soft paws prodded at Natsu's cheeks and he blinked down at his cat's black eyes. He tilted his small head, his gaze curious on Natsu.

"What about you?" Happy asked innocently, "Do you liiiiiiike her?"

Oh that was going to get old real fast.

But Natsu considered his question, his eyes falling on Happy and his deceptively wise gaze meeting him. His small jaw was set in an easy smile.

"No," He murmured to Happy, reaching the conclusion that eluded him.

Whatever he felt for Lucy, it wasn't summed up as a mere 'like'

"It's more than that," He tapped his little friend's belly.

Happy looked positively thrilled by this answer, his tail twitching attentively, "Really?" He asked, enthusiasm pouring off him.

"What can be more than 'like'?" He asked Natsu.

The dragon didn't have an answer for his cat. He wasn't sure what was the appropriate response anyway.

"I'll let you know when I figure it out," Natsu grinned, shooting a look at the shower door, "C'mon Happy. Let's go bother Lucy!"

"Okay!"

* * *

 _ **Everyone please be safe this holiday season! I hope it's a good one! No review responses this time, I haven't been able to get onto the computer with my family in town!** _

_**Alas, no sneak peek this time either :'D**_


	45. Gone with the Wind

_**ACT 3**_

 _ **WARNING: NSFW CHAPTER**_

 _ **LOOK FOR THE PURITY MARKS '####' TO SKIP**_

* * *

 _ **Gone With the Wind**_

 _ **45  
**_ _"Longing hearts could only stand so much longing."_ ― Margaret Mitchell _ **, Gone with the Wind**_

* * *

Happy, Lucy decided, was either intentionally interrupting her time with Natsu or was more innocently oblivious than Natsu himself.

She wasn't sure which it was, either was possible when one considered who Happy's 'parent' was. Regardless, it was slowly getting on her nerves. Every morning for the past week, while Happy was off trying to woo Carla, she and Natsu had enjoyed time to themselves slowly exploring each other and spending time just being with each other.

It was really nice.

Unfortunately, about the time things started to properly heat up, Happy would re-appear and those moments would come to a screeching halt. It was annoying. Especially since she could tell that something was still bothering Natsu from the fight. She still didn't know what, but aside from letting him know she was there to listen there wasn't much she could do to pry it out of him.

Though she suspected it had something to do with the news about Zeref. And who could blame him for being upset about that? Not her that was for certain.

So she was more than willing to let it slide for now, and soothe him with her touches. She just wished they had more time alone together. She thought maybe he needed it more than she did, and she needed it pretty badly herself in the aftermath of everything.

Natsu huffed out a warm breath against her neck as her hands trickled over his abdomen, sliding between the ridges of carved muscle and tan skin. She drew her thumb lazily across the cross shaped scar on his side, enjoying the way his body seemed to tremble under her touch. His sharp inhale was the same it always was every time her fingers re-discovered that sensitive spot and she grinned into his hair.

Slowly, she pressed herself even closer to him, unable to stop herself from hurrying a little more through their lazy, morning ritual.

Her fingers curled into his hair, meeting his vibrant, green eyes. They simmered with desire, affection and humor glinting behind his gaze.

"Look who's little miss impatient," Natsu purred, his hand stroking down the swell of her rear, pressing her hips towards his. He drank in the sound of her quiet gasp, his grip on her pressing dents into her pliant flesh.

They hadn't done much with one another this past week besides learn and grow comfortable in the other's hold and sight. So when Natsu's eyes met Lucy's, his inexperience and hesitation flickered behind his natural boldness.

"Maybe I took a leaf from your book?" Lucy whispered softly to him.

She knew whatever it was that bothered him had begun to fester. Though that wasn't entirely his fault. In moments he would open his mouth half-way, as if choking on the words he was about to say. But before he could pluck up the rest of his courage, something always, inevitably, interrupted them.

However, this time, there was nothing.

No Happy barging in. No one else from the guild bursting through the door. Even the birds outside seemed to be holding their breaths.

Sure enough, Natsu opened his mouth, but still nothing happened, and hope began to creep up her spine. Was he really going to say something? Would they finally be left alone while he did?

She could see the hesitation and fear building and gently caressed her hand down his cheek. That seemed to be all it took as something in Natsu visibly broke and his expression crumpled a little as he closed his eyes tightly.

"It was Cobra." He whispered into the still air, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist, almost like he was silently apologizing for something. She didn't understand why though. What did Cobra have to do with anything?

But before she could question him further he buried his nose into her neck, his grip tightening as if he was afraid she would vanish in the next moment, "He told me... bonds don't last on dragons. Our bond is gone. It has been since we got back from your world probably."

He instinctively cringed as he uttered those words, expecting her to turn away from him now that she was finally free of him and knew it.

He was therefore completely shocked when she gently shifted his head away from her neck and kissed him with such tenderness he wanted to cry.

"I'm glad." She murmured, wrapping her own arms around him, "I never liked that I was forcing you into anything." She smiled softly at him as he slowly opened his eyes to stare at her in bewilderment, "I'm happy you're here because you want to be, and not because I'm making you."

She tenderly ran her thumb over his cheek, concern marring her features, and it was only then he realized he was crying, "Natsu... what's wrong?" She asked in confusion.

Wasn't this a happy thing?

Why was he so upset?.

Natsu blinked rapidly, a hand lifting to his cheek, not even having noticed the hot tears spill free.

"Nothing..." He said dazedly, emotion trembling in his chest and resting in the hollow of his throat.

He dragged his hand across his cheeks, but the tears wouldn't stem so easily and he ducked his head into her shoulder, a wet laugh shaking from his lungs. Vulnerability trembled from his voice, something fragile like a bird resting in his chest.

"Nothing is wrong Lucy," He murmured, his hands resting against her waist and holding her like she was something precious.

"I just-" He breathed in her scent, trying to ground himself. His voice was very quiet, "I've done too many bad things to ever deserve anyone like you."

It was one thing to know Lucy's feelings. But it was another to hear it. To have her hands buried in his hair and soothing away his doubts. The fears of being abandoned again.

He put himself fully in her hands, trusting her not to break him. Battered and fragile as he was. Natsu put all of his faith in her.

And in that moment he realized the shocking depth of what he felt for her.

It was a selfish emotion. Selfish, dark, and ugly, because a villain like he should never feel it for someone who walked in the light like Lucy. But he was enough of a bastard not to care. What he felt was equal in its passion and beauty.

He pulled away from her, his hands lifting to her cheeks, his thumbs circling under her large, warm eyes.

"I love you," Natsu whispered.

Lucy's heart stopped, her eyes widening in shock and her jaw dropping. He loved her? The thought was enough to stun her for a moment even as her heart began pounding in excitement and her eyes started to sting.

"Natsu..." She choked, grasping his wrists to steady herself, and stared down at him with as much intensity as she could muster, "I love you too."

Her heart seemed to flip and bounce at the look of shock that formed on _his_ face when the words left her lips, and she couldn't help giggling a little wildly.

She'd never dreamed she would ever have a chance to say those words.

She'd known he cared about her, a great deal even, but she'd never imagined he would be able to sort through his feelings enough to _say_ it.

And that, of course, had assumed he loved her the way she did him. An awfully big assumption to make all things considered.

So to find out he did...

She surged forward, laughing and crying happily, and kissed him. She poured all of her joy and love for him into it, desperate to share in a way she knew he couldn't misunderstand.

And he didn't.

Though it took several moments for his brain to reboot so he could respond to her feverish kiss.

She loved him? She really loved him? He'd never dreamed he would hear those sacred words pass her sweet lips. Not even Igneel had said those words much. He'd known how much his dad loved him of course, but knowing and hearing were two different things.

But Lucy had said it.

She loved him. She loved him in a way no one ever had, and his heart tried to simultaneously melt and pound as she stole his breath with her happy kisses.

He growled softly into it and pulled her closer. She loved him.

She was _his_.

His most precious and beloved treasure, and no one would ever take her from him. He would guard and protect her, and keep her happy, and make love to her every chance he got. She would be his princess forever.

He growled again, deeper, hungrier, than before and deepened the kiss into something they'd only experienced once before. Except now it felt a thousand, million, times better, and he nearly whined under the intensity of it.

He didn't have the words for this. He wasn't sure they existed. He needed to _show_ her just how much he loved her and how happy her words made him. The desire for it, for her, was overwhelming.

Not once did he pause to question how silly his thoughts were. He knew this ran both ways. Natsu was a one girl kind of guy. There wouldn't be another one for him. There couldn't be.

Lucy had left her mark too deeply on his soul and filled in all the cracks in his heart.

She melted against Natsu and he filled his hands with her, twisting them around with a roll of his shoulders. He straddled her, his eyes growing hazy, but a flush of excitement coloring his face.

"I love you," Natsu grinned fiercely down at her, repeating the words as his lips laid claim to her collarbone, his hands drifting along her stomach.

His fingers twisted into her nightie, mouth ghosting over her generous breasts, hot breath warming her skin even through the fabric.

"I love you," He repeated it like a prayer, causing a happy giggle to burst free from Lucy, her eyes alight as he slowly began to drag down her body.

Natsu squeezed her thigh, light in his grip, but the tension coiling in his body was growing in temperature.

He had to show her. He needed to.

Wedging himself between her legs, Natsu pulled Lucy into a ravenous kiss, hips dragging into her lace-covered bottom. Before he hadn't understood the point of her wearing such things.

But now he began to understand.

####

Lucy moaned eagerly into the kiss, bucking her hips into his and shivering at the sensation of them rubbing together.

Oh that was good. And she definitely liked where this was going.

She licked and nipped playfully at his lips as he rubbed his hands against her panties. Heat shivered through her to pool in her belly at the contact and she decided to encourage him a little.

She smirked lightly into the kiss and slid her hands over his arms and shoulders. They were bare already from their earlier explorations, a fact she certainly appreciated now as she nudged him slightly away.

It was in that moment she blessed all their time taking it slow and getting comfortable with each other. By now he knew she wasn't shoving him away, and just shifted back with a dark hungry look in his eyes that made her tingle all over.

She grinned in response to it and pulled her nightie up and off, leaving herself bare to his hungry gaze.

The look on his face alone was enough to melt her, and she tugged lightly at him, "C'mon now Natsu." She purred huskily, "Don't leave me waiting."

The groan that escaped him was almost embarrassing.

Lucy couldn't help but feel a rush of satisfaction the way Natsu's gaze slanted hungrily over her, his tongue flicking out to wet his lips. His throat worked hard, swallowing thickly.

She lightly tugged his scarf loose from around his neck, sliding it free from where it rested on Natsu. Interested in ridding him of it for the moment, she dragged it down between their bodies His eyes followed the motion, watching as the fabric pooled on Lucy's stomach and decorated her breasts.

Her only intention had been to remove it so to gain better access to his throat, but all at once it seemed something in Natsu completely snapped.

The growl he released could be felt in her ribcage, and his strong arms lifted her up, dropping her onto his lap where she was sitting astride him.

His body was hot and rigid against hers, rippling muscle clenching as their chests came together. Lucy moaned as she felt something thick and heavy rise from him.

Natsu's mouth attacked her throat, frenzied fangs and lips tormenting her skin while his hand latched onto her breast and squeezed in just the right way. Lucy gasped, clenching the back of his head and pushing him further against her throat.

Her thighs flexed instinctively, grinding down onto the rigid heat pressing into the thin layers of fabric separating them. "Oh gods, N-Natsu wha-?"

"My scarf Lucy." Natsu growled thickly into her ear, the very sound of his husky voice making her shiver and arch into him more. Gods that voice should be illegal!

But his words didn't make any sense.

His scarf? What did that have to do with anything?

Natsu, however, was struggling to remember how to speak in actual words at the moment, let alone explain what seeing his scarf on her was doing to him.

He remembered the first time she'd ever worn it, and how much he'd liked it then, but he wasn't as confused as he'd been back then and now he understood _why_.

She was wearing his scent and mingling hers with his own, and suddenly he had images of her wearing his scarf while her belly was swollen with their hatchling dancing before his eyes and driving him wild with want.

"Please Lucy." He growled against her throat, trailing his lips up to capture hers hungrily, "I need you."

Lucy moaned into the kiss, shifting uncomfortably as heat surged through her again, only to gasp sharply as his hot fingers pressed against her soaking core. She whined and bucked as he rubbed her gently, clearly remembering the other times they'd been intimate, and then shoved the fabric aside so he could caress her directly.

"Gods yes Natsu!" She cried thrusting sharply against his fingers, tottering on the razor edge already thanks to the week of teasing and their confessions, "Please!"

She reached down, her fingers a little clumsy from the strength of her desire, and tugged his sleep pants down enough he sprang free.

She curled her fingers delicately around him, and stroked lightly as she lined him up. She groaned softly in approval when he got the hint and moved his fingers out of the way.

She grasped his entire length, her thumb pressing against the head. A pearl beaded out and Natsu's jaw tightened but he didn't dare look away from where she was hovering over him enticingly.

"F-fuck," He panted, her inviting heat was so close, Natsu was certain he would lose his mind before they even got started in earnest.

"That's the idea," Lucy teased breathlessly, moaning as she pushed her hips forward so her slit ran over him, giving a him a hint of what was to come. His finger remained curled around the crotch of her panties, but even a task so simple required a herculean amount of effort to sustain.

Especially with her sliding over him like that...

"Lucy-" He growled warningly, his free hand dropping down to her hip and squeezing.

Her eyes flashed with mischief, the heat pooling through Natsu's body and a painful throb burned in his groin. He felt himself twitching as she coated him in her fluids.

It was the best kind of torture but he couldn't handle this torment for much longer.

"Gods Lucy! You're killin' me-" His voice choked off before he could finish.

Because at that moment, Lucy decided to cut all tethers Natsu had with reality.

She sank down on him, heat engulfing him inch by glorious, silky, wet, and positively burning inch. For a second Natsu found himself looking up at the ceiling, somehow having been flattened onto his back by the overwhelming pleasure trying to consume him.

"You were saying?" She let out a quiet breathy noise, closer to a keen than an actual tease, "Something about killing you?"

Natsu groaned, his head dragging back across the mattress, back bowing and shoulders rising as he fought to keep from bucking madly into that crushing heat.

"I'm dead," He panted hard, "You slayed me."

"The dragonslayer, slain, huh?" Lucy moaned, delighting in his expression, twisted in torturous pleasure and fighting for control. She had done this to her mighty dragon. Reduced him to weak moans and delighted gasps. It made her heart swell with pride and happiness.

"Ready?" She took his rough hand, sliding it up her body in encouragement. It turned out Natsu didn't need much as he gathered his wits as fast as he was able with sweet agony fogging his mind.

Natsu curled a hand around her hips eagerly, enjoying the sight of her flushed cheeks and the sound of her soft pants.

He was affecting her too.

The thought triggered a surge of male pride that he was making her, his Lucy, feel pleasure.

He grinned a bit and trailed his hands up to caress and knead her breasts, eliciting a very satisfying moan from her, while she pressed her hands into his chest. His thoughts were derailed immediately though when she rolled her hips into his.

He'd known vaguely what was going to happen, but it hadn't prepared him for the reality of how it felt being buried in her crushing heat. And it certainly didn't prepare him for how it felt moving within that heat.

Glorious didn't even begin to describe it.

"Fuck Lucy!" He groaned as his hands dropped back to her hips instinctively and he thrust sharply into her, unable to hold back any longer.

"Yes Natsu." She panted, reveling in the incredible way he filled and caressed her so perfectly, and pushing back against him and crying out softly as he brushed that one spot inside her that drove her wild.

His eyes widened at the sound, and he was suddenly desperate to hear it again. As many times as possible. It was as necessary as breathing.

He growled hotly and thrust again, something in him snapping when she cried out again, and in seconds he'd rolled them over, "Lucy..." He growled thickly, and grunted in approval when she hooked her legs around him as he began moving in earnest.

He needed her. All of her. Her softness. Her sweetness. The pleasure of her wrapping around him. And the cries of pleasure he pulled from her. He had to have it all.

He was greedy and selfish, and every sharp gasp she made he wanted to swallow whole. His sleep pants were tangled around his knees and his scarf had twisted around not only Lucy, but him as well thanks to their flipping.

Not to mention Lucy's panties, which were stretching beyond repair between them.

Her heels dug into his ass, pistoning his hips forward in a short, shallow thrust that made stars explode behind his eyes. Fingers clenching into the blanket, arms shaking, he nearly popped right there

 _Gray streaking... Gray streaking..._ _ **Makarov**_ _streaking..._

It really said a lot about how riled Lucy had made him that Natsu still struggled to break even as he forced himself to chant that in his head like a mantra.

He rocked himself in her inviting heat, letting himself be devoured by her. Natsu could think of no better way to perish.

Body mantling over her, his eyes drank in the sight of her, body flushed, breasts bouncing in time with every one of his wild thrusts. She was twisting into the covers, her body tensing in the telltale signs of a rapid approach. It seemed with a week of exploration under her belt and nothing to show for it, she was just as ready as he was.

His hand groped between their bodies, dragging his fingers around her panties and tearing them off with an impatient snarl. Lucy gasped sharply, but before she could even say anything, Natsu's fingers found themselves sliding through her folds where their bodies were joined.

She gasped, clenching hard against Natsu enough to draw a guttural moan from him, a violent swear puffing out in a breath that was more smoke than air.

His thumb circled her nub, roughly stroking it to the strong tempo he had set.

Lucy grabbed onto him for support as she screamed and arched under the double assault, her brain going blank from the overload of pleasure.

It was the best she'd ever felt, and she couldn't get enough of it even as it drove her to insanity. Natsu was pushing her higher than she'd ever dreamed she could go and she loved every moment of it. He was a natural lover even with his adorable inexperience, and in the distant part of her mind not consumed by pleasure she hoped he wanted to play again soon after this.

Sweat trickled down Natsu's back, their shared breath huffing out between their thrumming bodies. He moved his hand from her hip, catching her wrist in a firm grip to tangle their fingers together.

Being with Lucy was like breathing in stardust, and Natsu was an addict already. He craved more of her, the heat she lit in him growing into an uncontrolled blaze for even a master of fire to subdue. She was the real flame between them, and he burned for only her.

The twisting in his stomach was maddening, filling his groin, spreading through his chest as he bucked and rolled his hips to the wild tempo of his heart. Her fingers scored delightful paths down his back and he felt himself approaching a dangerous edge.

Natsu drank in every moan and keen from Lucy, the flush growing over her chest and rising to her cheeks. He renewed the pressure where they were joined, his rough fingers tracing out the letters of her name as he moved against her. A hazy growl dragged from his throat and he bent to nip at her neck with smoky lips.

He couldn't last much longer, his hips plowing forward enough their bed bounced and groaned with their movements. The light _thump_ of their headboard occasionally smacking against the wall was the only other noise besides their labored breaths and soft cries.

Releasing her hand, Natsu rolled his arm up under her waist for a more comfortable position, but froze when he felt Lucy freeze from the sudden shift.

His eyes widened at the sight of her long legs twisting around his waist, the flex of her stomach frozen and the trembling of her chest between them. For one heartbeat it was like she was carved from stone.

Natsu shifted, sinking just a bit deeper within her heat. And just like that it was over.

She clenched tightly around him, her heat encompassing every inch of him he had sheathed within her. Her back bowed enticingly off the bed, insides fluttering around him. A cry exploded from her kiss-swollen lips, sending fresh heat and pleasure sizzling through his veins.

It was the sound of his name though, softly gasped in a voice breathless with pleasure he had given her, that proved his undoing as the world went still for a heartbeat before it exploded and his vision went white as ecstasy beyond anything he'd ever experienced tore through him in golden waves.

Natsu huffed out a quiet breath, smoke trickling from his lips and trailing up towards the ceiling as the waves began to subside, leaving a warm glow that had him growling happily. He smiled at her lazily, a happy whine dragging from his throat.

Arms trembling and joints turning to jello, he fell forward forehead resting just above her shoulder as he braced himself on his elbows. Breath shaking and pleasure spasming through him, Natsu's eyes closed. Growling at every clench of his muscles tightening and relaxing, as if with a mind of their own, Natsu rode down from that sharp peak.

Lucy struggled for breath, the heat rolling off Natsu burned her body where they were connected, causing a delicious shiver to run along her flushed skin.

She was limp and a little sore from his rough lovemaking, whimpering just a little when he pulled out of her with a rush of fluid following in his wake. But she ignored it as he curled up around her, a sleepy growl working over his face.

####

"Lucy," He breathed reverently into her neck. His hand skimmed over her naked body, across the tatters of her underwear and indents his fingers had left on her hips.

All he wanted to do now was to curl up in their room and sleep the rest of the day away despite it still being early morning.

He had the woman he loved in his arms, and despite a battle on its way, Natsu couldn't find a single thing wrong.

Natsu rescued his scarf from their tangled bodies and looped one white, shining end around his neck, the other around Lucy to keep her warm.

"Mmm?" She asked, her brown eyes warm.

"Love you," Natsu promised.

Her hand found his, fingers looping together.

"Love you too."

* * *

 _ **Sorry about the late update guys! I totally lost track of the schedule since I got a new phone and that had my update calendar on it! I hope you guys enjoy this little after-christmas gift!**_

 _ **KYTRIN WANTED TO NAME THIS CHAPTER 'Kama Sutra' and we giggled about it for like - an hour. I was THIS CLOSE-** THIIIIIS **CLOSE TO SAYING YES.**_

 _ **I will do ANYTHING for the sake of a joke. Hahahahaha...**_


	46. That Was Then, This Is Now

**_Act 3_**

 ** _I feel like the holidays hit me in the face with a brick._**

* * *

 ** _46_**

 ** _That Was Then, This Is Now_**

 _"The difference is that was then, this is now."_  
― S.E. Hinton _,_ ** _That Was Then, This Is Now_**

* * *

The couple stayed in bed for as long as they could that day alternating between sleeping and exploring each other. They made love once more, reveling in the pleasure and closeness it brought them, before Lucy reluctantly insisted that they had to get out of bed and head to the guild for the afternoon.

They had a war to get ready for after all, and there was no way they could skip out on an entire day. However much both of them might like to.

That didn't stop her from grinning broadly as they got up though. She was still slightly sore from Natsu's ferocity, but that was minor compared to how good she felt, and if his face splitting grin was any indication... he felt exactly the same.

Lucy sighed in bliss as she settled into her, unfortunately, quick bath. There was nothing like hot water for relaxing sore muscles, and the last thing she wanted was to give the guild more ammunition than they surely already would have.

The thought made her giggle a little, and she spared a grateful thought that she was alone. Natsu probably would've called her weird for that.

There were some things that simply did not change.

The thought led her down the well worn path of her amazement over how much things could change in a few short months. It seemed like another lifetime ago that they were snarling and scratching at each other at every opportunity, and Natsu was going out of his way to be malicious and annoying.

She still remembered the dead fish to the face with a shudder of revulsion.

Which reminded her of the book.

It had surely updated more than once by now. She hadn't touched it since she'd locked her drawer and walked away from it, but she couldn't lie that she wasn't still curious.

Maybe now would be a good time to show it to Natsu?

She really couldn't think of a better one. How much more appropriate and romantic could you get than after their morning together? And their confessions?

She blushed a bit at the memory, but a heartbeat later reality asserted itself. They really did have to get going. There was a lot of work to do, and they'd wasted the morning already.

She didn't mind, but this would probably take up the whole afternoon at the least.

She chased the thought around for a few moments and reluctantly put away the idea of telling him about the book. For right this moment. They needed to get to work. She would show him later tonight when they were alone again.

She smiled at the idea and began absently thinking about how she would explain things to Natsu as she finished washing and got out of the tub.

It was a fun thought, wondering how he would take reading what the book had to say about the two of them. And she was certain it was bound to be interesting.

Her own curiosity wasn't easily satiated, and Lucy found herself eager to show it to him.

When she stepped out of the bathroom, toweled off and finally clothed, all thoughts fled from her mind. Natsu was sprawled half on his back, half on the floor, looking as if he were melting into the very earth.

"Lucy you take so looooooong in the bath," Natsu whined pathetically.

"Says you! You're not even finished getting your pants tied on right," Lucy walked over to him, her hands dropping lingeringly over his waistband. His eyes snapped open, full attention drawn to her and her fingers.

Smirking at him, Lucy tugged him upright by the sash securing his pants, forcing him back to his feet.

He staggered for a moment, a hand coming up to brace against Lucy's shoulder. But he relaxed as she tied a neat knot around his waist.

"Figured you needed a little help," She laughed, pulling him in for a kiss once he was dressed, "You ready?"

"Yeah, but if you keep that up we won't leave." Natsu smirked, curling his arms around her waist.

He'd felt desire before, but he'd never dreamed it was like this, and he cursed the fight they had to get ready for as he was more than eager to explore this wonderful new thing she'd showed him.

However, she pulled back and headed for the door, tugging him along with her and he sighed a little promising himself that later on, when they had free time again, he was going to come back to this.

As it was, he curled his arm around her waist as they walked, but it was hard to pretend it was a normal day for them to head to the guild.

The townsfolk were busy making what preparations they could for when things got ugly, and it reminded him uncomfortably of other times and places where he'd seen similar hives of activity in preparation for war.

There was a soft whisper skating the streets of Magnolia. Each person whispered among one another and talks of evacuation reached Natsu's sensitive ears. Lucy looked a little down about it all, and he knew it was because she was trying to place partial blame on herself for what was happening around them.

His arm tightened around her waist, thumb pressing into the curve of her hip to drag her out of her thoughts. She offered him a wane smile as they slipped into the guild.

Again he was struck by how eerily similar things were shaping around him. Long, long ago... when the Celestial War was coming close to an end, Igneel had brought Natsu to Fairy Tail to convene with Master Makarov. More spritely back then than he was now, but still just as fearsome. Perhaps even more so.

Natsu had been so little, looking around the guild with wide-eyed awe. He remembered foolishly thinking there were people just like him all around, and Natsu had itched to play with the mages that looked close to his age. But Igneel had kept him by his side since Natsu had to fight in the war. The other children weren't like him or his father, they were strong, but they didn't have the armor of a dragon to protect their small bodies.

He remembered seeing Gajeel, his wild hair tamed back into a long ponytail, missing the headband he rarely went without now, and snorting at his father's quips every now and then.

Natsu lost himself to the memories as he looked around the guild in the present day.

So much had changed, but it seemed like some things were doomed to repeat.

His stomach flipped uncomfortably as he watched the adults bending over a table and speaking in hushed voices so Romeo and Asca wouldn't overhear by accident.

All the usual suspects were gathered. Makarov was sitting crosslegged on a table with Erza, Gray, Jellal, Gajeel and Juvia gathered around. Lucy pulled up short, her hand tightening in the back of Natsu's shirt and making him stop.

"What're they doing?" She asked him, watching them pointing at an old looking scroll laid flat before them.

Blinking at her observation, Natsu flashed her a crooked grin.

"It's sort a makeshift war room, they're planning tactics and strategy," Natsu explained, tugging her hand.

He was reminded again as he remembered watching the mages gather around that table. Gildarts of the West, Ur and Silver of the East, along with Makarov and his family. Ivan and Laxus.

Lucy felt a lump of ice form in her belly at the mention of war room. She'd realized, intellectually, that this would require planning and such, but somehow she'd never really envisioned the reality. Her friends, her family, they were planning for a war. A battle where people could die. All over her magic.

It was enough to make her ill.

She didn't want this. She'd never wanted this. But she knew there was no escaping it. Very powerful people wanted to force her to use her magic to open the gates, and there was no way she could fight them on her own.

She knew that as clearly as she knew that giving in wasn't an option. If she did that countless would suffer. The spirits she loved most of all. She couldn't do that to them.

But the whole thing still make her nauseous.

Natsu glanced at her, noticing her green complexion, and pulled her a little closer, "We're not gonna lose Lucy." He soothed, shifting so he could meet her eyes intently, "It's not gonna end like that. We're going to pound the dark guilds into submission."

"But... what if we don't all make it?" Lucy asked plaintively, "I can't bear the thought that..." She shook her head, unable to even say it.

"That's not going to happen." Natsu growled fiercely, "Because we're not going to let it!"

"Natsu's right." Erza spoke up, her voice gentle as she joined the pair and dropped a hand on Lucy's shoulder, "The dark guilds do not understand what it means to work together or fight for family. And that is what makes us stronger ultimately."

Lucy nodded uncertainly, wondering just how crazy her life was that she'd gone from lonely heiress to planning a war with her magic guild, but Erza seemed to take it as affirmation.

"Come now Lucy! You and Natsu join us and summon Leo. We have much work to do."

Natsu flashed Lucy a confident grin even as the feeling of deja vu grew stronger. Planning for war with the spirits. That brought back even more unpleasant memories. Memories of fighting for his life, and Igneel's death.

His own stomach churned at that one even as his resolve hardened.

He wouldn't let it happen again.

He was older now. Stronger. He would protect Lucy and their future.

However, the resolve didn't stop him from seeing the ghosts of his father and Metallicana standing around the table, snarling insults at each other and trying not to brag about how proud they were of their sons.

He unconsciously gripped his scarf, suddenly feeling very much like that lost little hatchling despite what he told himself.

 _"Natsu, stay close. I can see the way you're eyeing the kitchens. This isn't our nest. These mages have probably never even seen an appetite like yours," Igneel snorted, his foot coming down to stomp on the end of Natsu's white scarf, stopping his son short from his escape attempt._

 _"Hey!" Natsu squeaked where he rolled from left to right, trying to loosen his scarf enough to escape long enough to find something to eat._

 _His dad had been so busy planning this war against Natsu's brother, he couldn't even remember the last time they had done anything normal together._

 _Igneel didn't want Natsu to fight. But it wasn't like he could stop him from jumping into the middle of the battle anyway. His ears were too sharp to hide their plans, and it was Natsu's older brother. He had to help fight him off. Natsu believed this battle was all his fault._

 _Still, that didn't stop him from eyeing the other children his age. The itch to play with someone closer in age to him rising by the moment. He couldn't play with the other dragons in the nest, they didn't seem to like him much, and while Igneel was great - well it wasn't the same._

 _He stubbornly held by his father's side though. Although he couldn't say it was by choice._

 _Igneel was still stepping on his scarf, and Natsu was reluctant to part with it._

 _There was a serious little red headed girl with her hair tied down her back in a long braid, a dusty patch covering one of her eyes. And then there was some loser strutting around naked until his mother chased him down to put some underwear back on him while his siblings laughed._

 _A trio of white haired children were huddled together, and while they fussed and fought with one another... They looked so happy._

 _Natsu's little heart yearned to play with them too, but Igneel wouldn't let go of his stupid scarf. Natsu's entire body practically twitched with impatience._

 _"What is it Natsu?" Igneel asked after Natsu wiggled around his legs to try and use his scarf to entrap Igneel's legs, "Because you're going to earn yourself one heck of a flightless grounding if you keep that up ya lil' brat."_

 _But Natsu didn't take offense. Instead he was just amused at his father's empty threats._

 _Igneel's gaze followed after Natsu's, and a strange expression flickered over his face._

 _Natsu blinked at his father in confusion, "Dad?"_

 _Igneel blinked a little and he looked back down at him with a warm smile and the beginnings of a loving rumble in his chest, "Do you want to go play for a bit Natsu?" He asked, "You won't miss anything here if you do."_

 _Natsu's heart leapt at the offer. He really, really, wanted to go play. It would be so nice to wrestle with other hatchlings his age. The weird one that kept taking all his clothes off looked especially fun. But..._

 _He sighed reluctantly and shook his head, "I gotta stay." He mumbled, "I gotta stop big brother from hurting people."_

 _It was his responsibility as Zeref's family and nest. And he knew that if he gave in now he would keep giving in until he was just like the other kids and not fighting at all. And even though he was scared of this kind of fight he wasn't going to let it stop him from doing what he had to._

 _"Maybe... after?" He asked hopefully, and was rewarded with a sigh and then a head ruffle from Igneel, "Of course Natsu." The fire dragon rumbled affectionately. Though his expression was a little pained._

 _Except there wasn't an after._

 _Igneel had been badly wounded by Zeref, and he'd been forced to fight his brother in Mavis' library. And after that..._

Natsu nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked over to see Leo looking back at him, a look on his face that spoke of bitter understanding. It was the look of someone who had seen countless battles himself, and knew what it meant to see the ghosts of the past in the present.

It was surprising for Natsu, especially since he hadn't even noticed Lucy summoning him. He had really been caught up in his thoughts, hadn't he?

He shook his head, not wanting to concern Lucy, who was giving him a look that already spoke of worry. He bounced upright and slammed his palms flat on the table top, diving into the planning.

In the past he hadn't done much strategizing. That had been what Igneel was there for. But now he had to help fill that gap. And while he wasn't so great at sitting still and planning a fight out, he could at least offer some interesting narrative and ideas.

He _felt_ the battles more than he planned them. Ideas and strategy were only really useful when you were out in the middle of the brawl, blood pounding and fighting in the moment.

Because everything could change in the space of a minute. That was for sure.

He didn't know how much he was going to be able to affect the course of the battle. Even though he had ultimately been the deciding factor against Zeref, that wasn't to say he would be again. This time it was Lucy.

And he had to keep her safe at all costs.

Natsu tried very hard not to think how this felt an awful lot like deja vu.

Like how he was taking Igneel's place and Lucy was taking his. His stomach clenched at the thought, rolling with nausea at the idea of Lucy becoming anything like him.

He dismissed the thought as soon as it came since it was Lucy he was talking about. But still-

There was something about all this that made his heart uneasy. Like there was a bigger trap he hadn't been able to see.

"If Zeref is their main goal, then we need to understand their purpose might be more than just Lucy," Leo's voice cut in next to Natsu's ear.

"We need to go back to that final day in the Celestial War and see what Zeref's goals were. We might be missing some crucial detail," He continued.

Erza nodded, "Agreed. We need to comb through as much documented details we have on the event."

"You were there too, weren't you Master?" Jellal turned towards the old man.

Makarov frowned, "Hm, yes." He agreed, "After Igneel and Atlas Flame managed to destroy the eclipse gate, the fighting shifted to Magnolia itself." He scowled at the memory, "You kids were safe with the townsfolk and didn't see it, but the fighting was horrific."

He looked over at Natsu, "But I never saw Zeref after his battle with Igneel. Not until Mavis' library exploded into flame. Can you tell us Natsu?"

Natsu scowled down at the map. He didn't like remembering this. He didn't like thinking about how his brother had nearly fatally wounded the only father he could remember. Or what had happened after...

 _"Zeref!" Natsu cried as he skidded to a halt in the large library, tears streaming down his face and grime covering the rest, "How could you?!" He roared, "How could you do that to Igneel?!"_

 _Up until the end he hadn't wanted to believe his big brother would really hurt Igneel. There had been that childish hope that everything would be fine, and things would work out with Zeref realizing what a stupid head he was being. But that wasn't how it had turned out._

 _Instead Igneel was hurt bad, possibly dying, and his stupid brother was sitting at a table reading some dumb book like it was nothing! It made him want to curl up and cry, but more than that it made him want to scream and rage, and as the feelings grew his fires burned hotter until a young dragon was standing in the place the child had been._

Natsu clenched his fists at the memory, the pain still raw after all this time, "I don't know." He growled tensely, absently feeling Lucy's gentle hands curl around his, "He was reading when I found him. Like everything he'd done was nothing. Like he hadn't just hurt Igneel."

He bared his fangs unconsciously at the memory, and in response Lucy pressed against his side as the rest of the nest moved around him in support.

"What happened after that Natsu?" Lucy asked quietly, her eyes sad and apologetic that they were making him re-live his pain.

Natsu shook his head, "I lost it and transformed. Then he said something about the book being helpful and a gate opened. I attacked him after that."

"Ah yes." Makarov murmured thoughtfully, "I remember that. The destabilization of Zeref's magic and the destruction of the eclipse gate meant portals were popping up and collapsing all over the place until you defeated him."

Natsu dragged a hand over his forehead, trying to push back the emotions gripping him. He growled in the back of his throat, "That's really it. I totally lost control. My emotions got the better of me and I set Mavis' library on fire. I couldn't stop raging until I had completely exhausted myself even though Zeref was long gone."

He grumbled. Natsu couldn't even recall the blaze right afterwards. He just remembered coming to in a pile of ash, surrounded by all sorts of people he didn't recognize. All except the one who had mattered.

"I went to find Igneel right afterwards, whatever Zeref was reading didn't do him any good. He still got hurt, still fell through the portal, and the book probably got turned to charcoal with the rest of the volumes in the library," Natsu finished.

"It's nothing you guys really don't already know," He looked over at Lucy, "It's not going to help us protect her."

And that was his priority.

Strange, Natsu had so many people to protect now. He hardly thought such a thing would even have been possible for him had someone asked him that just a while ago.

But now he had people who cared about him. And he, them. A nest. A family.

Lucy. The Dragons. Fairy Tail.

He wanted to explore all of that.

And Zeref wasn't going to mess that up for him.

* * *

 _ **Thanks for everyone who reviewed! There are only a couple of chapters left in Act 3 and then we'll be in the Final ACT. (ohgodsosoon?plzplzplz.) I'm calling it early tonight, so I'm updating a couple of hours early!**_


	47. The Count of Monte Cristo

_**47**_

 _ **HAPPY NEW YEAR!**_

* * *

 _ **The Count of Monte Cristo**_

 _"Moral wounds have this peculiarity - they may be hidden, but they never close; always painful, always ready to bleed when touched, they remain fresh and open in the heart."_

― Alexandre Dumas, _ **The Count of Monte Cristo**_

* * *

Lucy sighed in relief as she and Natsu finally crawled into bed. It had been a very long day of planning and preparing and more planning and she was exhausted. She didn't want to think about what the actual fight might be like at this rate. The whole thing was enough to make her head spin.

They were too tired to even play anymore. Some caresses and kisses were exchanged while they got ready for bed, but there wasn't enough energy for it on either side. Which was odd considering it was Natsu, but she had the idea that everything today had brought a lot of uncomfortable memories to the surface for him.

Something like that was enough to exhaust anyone.

There was a sort of tiredness clinging to the edges of Natsu, smothering his usual vibrant spirit. All the talk about Zeref and Igneel had drained him, and he didn't appear to be in a very romantic mood. His mind was distracted and far away, which wasn't conducive to her showing him something as special as their story.

When she shared it with him, she wanted his heart to be at ease. Not filled with turmoil and fears of the unknown. Not while they were planning a war.

Perhaps soon, when they could get a day just to themselves, where Natsu wasn't forced to dredge up memories of Igneel and his brother, she would pull it out from her hiding spot.

But for now she was happy just helping him relax and forget the day.

So she pulled on her most comfortable night clothes and snuggled up to him with a tired smile, "Good night Natsu." She murmured and leaned up to kiss him one more time.

"G'night Lucy." Natsu smiled, the strain he'd felt all day falling away as he held her close, chuckling a bit as his fingers got lazily slapped when he groped her, and relaxed enough to drift off to sleep.

His dreams, however, were not as relaxing as his bed companion was.

It didn't take long before he found himself in a familiar looking library and staring at a very familiar looking figure.

"Zeref!" He snarled, furious at just the sight of his brother.

"Hello Natsu." Zeref smiled as he looked up from his book, "It's so very good to see you again."

Natsu flexed his fingers, his eyes drawing around the foggy room. It was not entirely familiar, the dusty tomes of books aged and old stretched from floor to ceiling.

In every corner there were bookcases, a richly painted dark wood that were each impressive and beautiful works of art. Some were heavily carved with the Fairy Tail insignia, others were plain, unadorned and simple.

This was Mavis' library. Natsu had only seen it once before - the day he had destroyed it. So many details of this place were foggy, missing from chunks of his memory.

But the man sitting at a table in front of him, lazily flipping through the crisp pages of a book, reading on as if undisturbed by their strange surroundings.

"Mavis' library," He commented, eyes flashing over to Natsu, "It seems appropriate you would pick this as the place for us to talk."

Wary, Natsu advanced a few questioning steps. This was a dream. Natsu was aware of that fact.

So why did it feel like he was somewhere else.

"I had been trying to get in contact with you for a while now, it seems you had a rough conversation today that finally opened you up to me. That's fine. It just makes it easier for me to talk to you," Zeref finally looked up, his dark eyes a liquid calm, "Natsu. Please sit."

Natsu didn't budge, his jaw locking furiously as he glared at the man before him, "Think I'll stand."

"You're alive now, and projecting your thoughts to me somehow?" Natsu hissed.

"Something like that," Zeref began, but cut off when Natsu lunged at him with a furious roar. His fingers were curled into angry talons, deadly intent written on his face.

Zeref disappeared before Natsu could even touch him.

He reappeared a few feet, just out of immediate reach behind the dragon, a cool smile on his face.

"No need to be so touchy, I just wish to speak with you Natsu. I believe you also have questions for me," Zeref said patiently.

It was true. Natsu had a hundred and one questions for his brother. The one who had supposedly been dead for longer than Natsu cared to think about.

But none of his personal questions were important.

"Why do you want Lucy?" Natsu demanded, struggling to contain his rage enough to think with any sense of clarity, "You used to be able to open gates on your own. Why can't you do it yourself? Leave her out of it!"

Zeref looked faintly surprised. His eyebrows raised at Natsu and he strode past him calmly, returning once more to the seat he had been reclining in previously.

He turned critical eyes on Natsu.

"Don't tell me you have grown a fondness for this girl," Zeref said warningly, "You can't love her, can you?"

Natsu's eyes flared in challenge, and his brother gaze him a pitying look.

"Foolish Natsu, Dragneel men don't have the best of luck when it comes to love," He said with almost a fond smile on his face, "Our loves will always destroy us, unless we eliminate them first."

Natsu ground his fangs together furiously before snorting and crossing his arms, "Wow. Reduced to lying now? That's just pathetic. Not that I had any respect for you before after what you did to me and to Igneel."

If Zeref was upset by his barbs he didn't show it. Rather he smiled even more, his amusement showing through clearly. As if Natsu was still the child he'd once been and he was the ever indulgent big brother.

"Natsu..." He said in a tone that made Natsu want to try and rip his face off again, "I'm afraid it's quite true. I loved Mavis quite dearly." He laughed a little, "I still do I suppose. Nevertheless, she nearly destroyed me long before you were even brought back. It was only by pure chance I was able to escape our little family curse."

"If you've truly fallen in love with young Lucy, be careful brother." He purred, "All may not be as it seems."

He shrugged, "Not that it matters in the end. Your demonic brothers and sisters will collect her for me and she will open the gate. She's the only one who can. A child of magic born in a land without it. Quite ironic really."

"Then again, I suppose it was those circumstances that gave her the strength she has to push through and work magic where none should exist. Truly a remarkable talent don't you think?"

"You aren't getting your hands on Lucy!" Natsu snarled at his brother, anger pulsing through his body. He couldn't help but rise to his brother's light teases. He knew exactly where to press.

He grabbed Zeref by the collar, a vein throbbing in his temple, giving way to the blood which roared like the fire he held in his chest.

At least that explained why he was after Lucy, but that didn't put Natsu's mind at ease. In fact it only made him worry more.

Zeref put his hand over Natsu's wrist, his touch cold and chilling, almost as if it suffocated the heat in Natsu's entire body.

"Such dedication," Zeref gave Natsu a look of genuine concern, "And to a woman who holds secrets from you."

"Lucy doesn't have any secrets from me!" Natsu roared in frustration, his temper getting the better of him. He gave Zeref a rough shake, finding no satisfaction in the way his head rolled on his shoulders carelessly.

His breath caught in his chest at the humored expression on Zeref's face. Natsu's grip went limp and Zeref pushed backwards, shoving space between them.

"Don't be so foolish Natsu. Everyone has secrets. Even Lucy," Zeref taunted, "Especially someone like her."

"If you don't believe me," He said patiently, "Then why don't you look in her bottom drawer in her nightstand? I can sense it's there, and I'm sure you'd be very interested in what she's kept hidden from you. She only met you because I wanted her to."

"What?" Natsu blinked, scoffing a bit at Zeref, his lip curling up.

Zeref didn't seem interested in listening though. Instead his eyes were drawing back towards the window. The fog around them thickened.

"Ah, well it seems we've wasted too much time now. You're waking up," Zeref sighed, "But I suppose you'll recognize it when you see it. Now that you remember…"

The library fell away in a tunnel of darkness, wrapping back around Natsu and sinking into his uneasy heart.

Natsu's eyes flew open at those words and he panted softly as he tried to reorient himself. That had been an insane dream.

Except...

He wasn't sure if it had been a dream.

He rubbed his hand over his face, grateful he hadn't woken Lucy up with his nightmare. He'd always known his brother was connected to his demons. More than he'd ever wanted to admit.

He'd told himself for centuries that the little voice in the back of his head he heard almost every night before going to sleep or waking up was just his imagination. Zeref had been dead and his memory was trying to haunt him. That was all. Except that wasn't all, was it? Zeref was alive, and trying to open the gates again.

What if the 'ghost' had been more than that?

He grimaced as his thoughts spun, and bit back the urge to snarl in frustration. That would definitely wake Lucy and Happy up.

Okay, there was one easy way to figure out if he was dreaming or not. He would just check the drawer real quick and prove his stupid brother wrong.

Galvanized by that thought he gently extracted himself from Lucy's embrace, kissing her softly when she whined in protest over the loss of his heat. That settled her back down and he smiled a bit as he climbed carefully out of bed and headed to her desk.

He'd never gone rifling through it after the first couple times had earned him a Lucy Kick to the face, so he'd never investigated all of the drawers on it.

He crouched down curiously and pulled it open, a little surprised it wasn't locked, and peered inside.

There was a book there.

One that said Fairy Tail on it and held the emblem. He remembered seeing Lucy carry it around with her a few times before it suddenly disappeared. But - ...

Zeref in the library.

His heart began thumping inexplicably as he reached in and carefully lifted it out. This was no diary. He knew what her diary looked like. He'd read it a time or two early on. This was something else. He could practically smell the age and magic on it.

He nervously lifted the front cover to look at the first words.

 _Once upon a time in a land far, far away, there lived a mighty dragon..._

Natsu's grip tightened on the spine, unease trickling down the back of his neck. His eyes flashed up towards Lucy, lying innocently in a tangle of covers. She let out a sigh into her pillow.

It was inviting, urging Natsu to put the book back down and forget he had ever seen it. But it was in his hand, and he was curious.

Lucy hadn't told him about this.

But it couldn't mean anything bad, could it? Lucy wouldn't hide anything from him.

He would just read a couple of pages to put his mind at ease...

-::-

Dawn broke over Magnolia, a sliver of light piercing through the curtains in Lucy's home. She groaned, shivering under the thin blankets.

The seasons had long since begun to change, although Fiore had a tendency to swing from one extreme of a season to another in the blink of an eye. One day it could be snowing, the other it could be blistering hot outside and she would be shoving Natsu off the side of the bed.

It was not one of those days.

Speaking of her personal heater, Lucy cracked an eye open, finding the bed uncomfortably cold without him in it.

"Natsu...?" Lucy croaked hoarsely, scrubbing the heel of her palm against her eye.

No answer.

Seeing Happy still curled up in his nest of blankets, Lucy slowly edged out of bed and walked around their apartment to locate her missing dragon.

"Natsu?" She called out a second time, again receiving no response.

She circled around the entire floor, trying to discern where he had run off to. It wasn't like Natsu to head off to the guild by himself, or even wander off somewhere else on his own. Natsu had a tendency to pick fights wherever he went, and it was almost a habit for him to antagonize the townsfolk.

Just as she was about to give up and head to the guild to see if he was there, Lucy caught sight of the window above the sink open.

She poked her head out, remembering Natsu sometimes had a penchant for climbing onto rooftops when he was bothered like he had when they first were getting used to one another.

Struggling for a handhold, Lucy twisted her body over the sink and counter, which was already uncomfortable enough to maneuver on its own.

She managed to scrabble up the side of the roof, climbing up enough to hook her leg up to get enough leverage.

Her thoughts turned murderous as she caught sight of his form, hunched over on the opposite side of the roof as her and facing the street.

"Natsu! What're you doing up here?" She demanded, getting up from scraped knees and onto unsure legs.

His head twitched towards her, but Natsu didn't turn to look around.

"I was reading," He replied, voice flat and strange sounding.

Lucy frowned and held her arms out for balance, taking a couple of tumbling steps towards him. She froze as she felt a warning wave of heat roll off Natsu when she drew close.

"Lucy don't come even one step closer to me," Natsu growled, a sound so cold, so warning, she felt a sharp pang twist through her chest, "My magic isn't stable. I could hurt you."

His scarf fluttered around his neck, catching Lucy's attention for the first time. There were new rips in the material, a few of the scales flaking off in a clatter around Natsu. What was most concerning was how dark it was.

At one point, the once dirty scarf looked almost new again. Just a day ago it had been a bright white, and aside from a small hole or rip there, it looked wonderful.

Now though- his prized scarf looked like it was barely holding itself together. What had he done to it overnight?

"Natsu," Lucy said, growing more alarmed by the moment. Because she was beginning to suspect his scarf was not an ordinary piece of fabric, "What's the matter - your scarf it's...?"

"Oh, yeah," Natsu's let out a harsh laugh, his hand lifting towards his neck, squeezing at the fraying fabric, "Pretty messed up now, isn't it? I think I finally get it."

Lucy swallowed and edged in closer, "You said you were reading something. What did you read?"

Wordlessly, Natsu held up a familiar book. The one that had started everything off.

Lucy felt a knot tighten in her throat, her heart stuttering in her chest. Guilt churned in her stomach, reminding her of the worry she felt before over Natsu finding out about it.

"You went looking through my drawers..." Lucy said between stiff lips, "Natsu that isn't-"

His head whipped around and he rose, finally looking at her. Eyes dark, nearly black with anger, Lucy almost didn't recognize the expression on his face. He looked like a stranger.

"Now I really know why you never wanted me looking through your desk," He snarled and tossed the book on the roof with more force than necessary, letting it land in front of her.

"Did you think it was funny? Peeking into my thoughts like this? Finding a way to tame the dragon like some domestic dog no one would ever fear again?" Natsu's jaw locked, his eyes flashing with betrayal.

He thought she was different.

But she had been using him the same way everyone else had wanted to in the past. Using Zeref's book to find clever ways to respond to him. To get him to open up to her.

It all made frustrating sense now in hindsight. The easy way he opened himself up to her was only logical. She had a way into his head. This whole time.

He had opened his heart to her, completely trusting her. Thinking Lucy could see a man instead of a monster.

But this wasn't a fairy tale, was it? The dragon was the villain, and he wasn't Lucy's prince. That wasn't Natsu's role to play. He was just her pet.

Lucy's heart clenched painfully at the accusations he was flinging at her, "No! It wasn't like that Natsu!" She exclaimed, panic and heartbreak warring inside her, "Please listen! I haven't even loo-!"

She was cut off when a surge of blistering heat hit her and she took an unconscious step back.

"You expect me to believe you?!" Natsu roared furiously, nearly incoherent with rage that she would try and deny what she'd done. Zeref had wanted her here. For this.

"I swear it's not what you think!"

"Shut up!" Natsu roared again, bursting into flame all over as he prowled forward, "I'm not interested in your lies Lucy!" He clenched his fraying scarf even more tightly, "You're just like all the others!"

Fireballs curled around his fists and Lucy felt a chill of real fear. He wasn't listening to her. He didn't believe anything she was trying to say. He didn't even want to hear the possibility that there was a different story than the one he'd put together in his head.

She looked up into his eyes and felt her heart shatter at the look of complete anger she saw there, "Natsu... please..." She entreated, reaching out to him despite the danger, "Let me explain."

"Stay away from me Lucy." Natsu snarled a warning, his fangs bare. There was a true hint of strain in his voice as he fought to keep his spiking magic leashed. He ground his heels into the roof and took a wide step backwards for distance, "I don't have the control to deal with you right now."

"No Natsu, I'm not leaving!" Lucy shot back, her bottom lip trembling but her stubbornness insisting she keep pressing. To try and get through his hard head and make him see the truth. His eyes flashed a menacing crimson.

She had never seen him this close to a razor's edge before. There were times she forgot he was a demon at all because of how far deeply it was buried under the discipline taught to him in his dragon slaying. But it seemed that fine tuned control had been stripped away under the force of his bitter emotions.

" _ **Don't!"**_ Natsu shouted, the flare of red in his eyes a warning. _ **  
**_

Lucy stubbornly tried to touch him anyway, but the gesture proved one too many as there was a surge of fire from him that punched her squarely in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her, and enveloping her as it shoved her off balance and tumbling off the roof.

Lucy screamed in mingled pain and terror as she felt nothing but air beneath her. There was a moment of perfect stillness as she stared at a shocked Natsu who lunged forward to try and snag her at the last second. The fire around her immediately vanished, though the pain from the burns it had left behind didn't, but that didn't stop gravity from re-asserting itself as he vanished out of sight and she fell.

She tried to curl up and brace for impact, but already knew there wasn't enough time. Her house wasn't that tall. However, impact never came.

"I gotcha Lucy!" Happy exclaimed as he held tightly onto her. He'd been woken by Natsu's roaring, and although he didn't understand what was going on exactly, he knew that something really bad had just happened between Natsu and Lucy.

He flew back up so they were above the roof again, "Are you okay?" He asked Lucy in worry.

"No." Lucy choked, trying her best not to cry with Natsu looking, "I'm not."

She looked up at the dragon, her tears stinging her eyes anyway, and tried to understand what had happened to the dragon she'd fallen in love with. The one she'd thought was her partner and nothing could get between them.

She tried to open her mouth to say something, anything, but no words would form around the lump in her throat.

It seemed that even if she had been able to speak Natsu wasn't interested in hearing them anyway. His face, which had been open and raw with shock for a moment, went blank and then dark as he turned and stalked towards the other side of the roof.

"I'm leaving." He growled darkly, "Do yourself a favor and don't come looking for me. You wouldn't like what happens if you do."

Lucy watched as the one person she'd thought she could count on to always be by her side vanished, and lost her battle against her tears and pain.

* * *

 _ **Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I hope 2016 is great for everyone!**_


	48. The Last Unicorn

_**Act 3**_

 _ **Guys! The reviews aren't showing up! Don't worry we're getting them!**_

* * *

 _ **48**_

 _ **The Last Unicorn**_

 _"Great heroes need great sorrows and burdens, or half their greatness goes unnoticed. It is all part of the fairy tale."_

― Peter S. Beagle **,** _ **The Last Unicorn**_

* * *

Happy carried the sobbing Lucy to the guild, his little wings straining and exhausted under the effort he made to keep her in the air. He was confused and scared.

Never had he seen Natsu like that, so angry and out of control. The book Lucy held in her burned hands seemed to weigh them down, but she stubbornly refused to let go of it, so it came along for the ride.

And when Happy dropped down in front of the guild, nudging Lucy in with soft paws to the back of her leg, silence threatened to swallow the guild at the sight of her.

Burned, crying, and holding onto the book like a lifeline, Lucy hesitated by the door.

Erza jumped to her feet at once, rushing over to Lucy and grabbing her shoulders when it looked like she was about to fall over, "Lucy! These injuries! Are you okay!"

Her eyes went wild, searching over her shoulder for her ever-present shadow. And with a pang, Lucy knew she would not find him.

"Natsu isn't here," Lucy whispered. Her bottom lip trembled as the reality of what she was going to say hit her.

"He's gone."

There was a moment of complete silence at that pronouncement before the entire hall started talking at once.

"Gone? What do you mean gone?"

"How can he be gone? You've got your bond!"

"Is he fighting someone?"

Lucy felt her heart break even more, if that were possible, at the confused babble, and fresh tears spilled hotly down her cheeks. They hurt where they came in contact with her burns, but she didn't care. It wasn't like she could stop them anyway.

She managed to spot a flicker of movement at her side and looked down to find Wendy standing there, a determined glint in her eyes despite her wobbly chin, "Miss Erza please help me get Lucy to the infirmary." She said fiercely, if quietly, "I need to heal her."

Erza nodded, despite her own very real alarm over Lucy's news and carefully guided her to the back and into bed so Wendy could tend to her.

"Lucy..." Makarov crooned, equal parts worried and alarmed, as Wendy got to work, "I know this is hard child, but please... you must tell us what happened."

Lucy's tears renewed themselves again as she tried to bury her face in her pillow, "He found the book." She sobbed, "He read it all. I never got the chance to explain it to him. He thought... he thought I was using it to control him. But that wasn't it! I haven't read it in months! I wanted..."

She shook her head incoherently, "The bond's broken." She whispered hoarsely, "He left. He promised he wouldn't leave me, but he's gone." Just like her mom and dad. Grief and hurt tore through her and she lost herself to her tears, barely even feeling Wendy's soothing healing.

"He's a real piece of work," Gray growled angrily, his arms crossed and aggression in the set of his shoulders. He was staring at the burns disappearing under the flow of Wendy's magic.

"So, can we count on fighting against Natsu?" He asked bitterly.

"He had no bond, and the one person we would have thought he'd never attack-," Juvia murmured, a hand covering her mouth.

There were several members of the guild who murmured in confusion and agreement. No one knew what to do. It was much more simple when they were simply enemies. But now they had all thought they had become friends.

Hesitant doubt was cast on Natsu, and no one knew if on the heels of an attack from Tartarus and Grimoire Heart, they would be under siege from a vengeful fire dragon that now knew all their tricks. None wanted to believe it, it wasn't the Fairy Tail way, but the evidence of Lucy's burns was damning.

Lucy shook her head and stood up, pulling away from Wendy.

"No! It's not- It's not like that!" Lucy protested. She looked at her shaky hands, "He didn't mean to burn me like this. It was an accident. Natsu warned me he didn't have control over his magic, but I didn't listen."

She hiccupped a little, "Natsu hasn't had his bond for months. Since that time we got back from my world."

"I'm sorry we kept that fact a secret," Lucy murmured and looked down, "We only discovered it a little while ago ourselves, and Natsu was afraid if everyone knew he was no longer bound-... "

"He wouldn't be welcome," Jellal finished where Lucy trailed off, his expression grim, but of one that knew too well what Natsu might be thinking.

The guild once again fell silent, no one knowing what to do or say.

Makarov sighed and straightened his shoulders, "We cannot let this go on the way it has been."

He looked at Lucy firmly, "We will find Natsu. Don't worry over his whereabouts."

"We will send out some teams to look for him, but Lucy, I need you to stay here in case one of the guilds attack."

"But-" Lucy protested. She wanted to argue, to demand to be taken along. After all, she had been the one to keep that secret from him. Even if he over reacted to the truth, that alone had been her decision.

"He's family Lucy, and none of us will rest until our family is whole again," Makarov said sagely.

Gajeel snorted loudly, catching the attention of those gathered. He slammed his heavy, studded boots into the floor, standing up taller than Lucy.

"Alright enough of yer bawwin,' we're going to find that shitty lil' salamander and drag him back so he can beg you for mercy," Gajeel snorted.

Lucy blinked as Sting and Rogue perked up at Gajeel's proclamation, "Yeah!" Sting agreed while Yukino wrapped her arm gently around Lucy's shoulders, "We'll beat some sense into him if we have to." He gave Lucy a confident grin that had her heart jolting with hope despite the pain of how similar it looked to Natsu's when he was truly happy.

Yukino smiled as she guided Lucy back to bed, "Don't worry. The nest will find him and sort him out." She looked up at Sting, "I'll stay here and help guard Lucy since I'm useless when it comes to tracking."

Gajeel nodded shortly at her and started clumping towards the door, "C'mon runts!" He growled over his shoulder, "Sooner we get started the sooner we can drag his sorry carcass back."

"Tch. I'm going too." Gray growled as he moved to follow them, "That firebreathing loser was never a match for my demonslaying ice. I'll turn him into an ice cube if I have to."

He might do it regardless.

He was pissed. Lucy was his friend, and had become something like a little sister since she'd arrived. And no one hurt his family.

He'd deliver Natsu back to Lucy alright, but not before he gave him the pounding of his life for this.

He didn't know that Natsu was already giving himself a worse pounding than anything he could ever dream up.

* * *

Natsu's hoard was trashed.

Mountains of coins were blown apart and smelted down into small, golden ingots. Paintings were smoldering, fine cherry wood was smashed in, and gems were shattered like shards of glass.

Natsu fisted his fingers in his hair, breathing heavily as he paced like a caged animal.

He had transformed three times already into his partial dragon form, but much to his displeasure, no longer found it was comfortable.

Nor did it dull the rage in his emotions.

His magic lashed out in an uncontrolled whip from him, smashing into the ceiling and sending a tapestry puddling on the floor behind him, burning. His magic was still unstable, still brimming over and hurt as it tried to find an outlet Natsu wouldn't give it.

Natsu no longer paid it any mind. At least here he didn't have to worry about hurting anyone.

Hurting Lucy.

Natsu had been angry. Angry enough to yell and shout, but never angry enough to lay a hand on her. He could never hurt her. To strike her would be worse than any injury he could cause to himself.

Which was stupid.

Because she lied to him.

She used him.

She had told him she loved him, and held him in her arms. Natsu had welcomed those touches. The intimacy that cloaked deception and the soft press of her lips against her ear at night. The soft whispers they shared as quiet, muffled laughter filled their room. None of it had been _true_. He felt used and pathetic. So desperate for love, she had been able to manipulate him with ease.

He should have wanted to kill her.

But he didn't.

Instead he felt sick beyond reason. His stomach rolled at the thought his flames had actually burned Lucy. And despite the betrayal licking away at his heart like some kind of festering wound, Natsu could only wonder if she was alright.

It was pathetic.

Was Zeref right?

The thought circled around in his brain, and as much as he didn't want to believe his jerk brother was right about anything he couldn't shake it. Every doubt he'd ever felt was feeding on it and at the moment he couldn't find a way to argue with any of them.

He blinked a little in surprise as he caught a whiff of Lucy's scent and looked around in surprise. Had she followed him or something?

He tried to suppress the wild surge in his heart at the thought she'd chased after him, not certain if it was happiness or anger, but the scent wasn't getting stronger like it would be if she was getting closer.

He sniffed around a little, wondering if she'd gotten lost or something, and began tracking it. However, his nose didn't lead him to Lucy. Instead it led him to the gown he'd given her weeks ago when they played here together.

It was saturated with her scent, and thanks to the spells on his lair it hadn't faded yet.

He reached out and caressed the beautiful fabric with a shaking hand. He remembered when he gave that to her. Her surprise. Her protests that she thought it was beautiful and loved it. The way they'd chased each other and played dragon and princess like a couple of little hatchlings.

She'd been so happy that day. And so had he.

The fight went out of him in a rush as the memories swept him and he curled his arms tightly around the mannequin the dress was adorning, refusing to acknowledge what the stinging in his eyes was.

"Lucy..." He whispered, guilt and disgust gnawing at him again, "I'm sorry."

He remembered her smile as he breathed in her scent, suddenly feeling very small and powerless. His heart ached, a reminder of every adventure he went on with her.

The way Lucy looked at him when he burned her. It was like she was looking at him like he was a monster. And in that moment, he finally accepted that truth for what it was.

He didn't blame her.

All those people he had blamed for calling him that in the past didn't matter. The only one who had made him into a monster was himself. He himself was the real enemy.

Slowly, he found he didn't care if Lucy was just manipulating him, if Lucy didn't really love him either, or if this was just an elaborate hoax.

She was the first friend Natsu had known in years and he loved her in all ways. It made the heartbreak even worse, but the clarity it brought him was worth it. Just so he could see through the haze of smoke in his mind.

Natsu buried his face in the dress, letting the scent of Lucy calm him. His heart felt hollow and it ached but there was something different lingering in him from before. Something similar to sad acceptance.

No one could really love him, but that was okay.

He could accept not being with Lucy. He could accept it if she didn't love him. But the time they spent together, Natsu had to believe there was at least something in the way of friendship there. It was a desperate and hopeless desire, but it was all he had to cling to. It _couldn't_ have all been a trick. No one was that good. Even if it was just one-sided.

But he messed up and he hurt her. Even if it had been done accidentally, Natsu had still done it. The rage from his fires was gone, chased out of him by a totem so simple as a dress. Natsu wasn't even sure if he could go back and face her.

Now that he was grimly accepting the fact he could no longer be a dragon that raged and burned everything around him, Natsu didn't know what to do with himself.

No guild, no nest, no Lucy.

What was he anymore?

* * *

 _ **Guys I can't respond to reviews since they aren't showing up, but we are getting them! Also wow guys! All of you guys must have come back from holidays! Here is your sneak peek!**_

 _And maybe, just maybe, it would be possible for him to regain a little of what he'd lost and stop being the monster._

 _He knew he wasn't a hero. But he didn't have to be the villain anymore. Maybe after this it would be okay to just be Natsu of Fairy Tail._

 _That was, if they would still let him._


	49. The Return of the King

_**END ACT 3**_

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO FAINTTWINKLING FOR NOT ONE BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF ART, BUT TWOOOO! I JUST REBLOGGED THEM ON MY ACCOUNT ON TUMBLR. SO GO TAKE A LOOK!**_

* * *

 _ **49**_

 _ **The Return of the King**_

 _"His grief he will not forget; but it will not darken his heart, it will teach him wisdom."_

― J.R.R. Tolkien **,** _ **The Return of the King**_

* * *

Lucy sighed in frustration as she set down her book and slammed her fist into her hapless pillow. She was still confined to bed, despite her burns having been healed, and it was starting to feel like the walls were closing in around her.

The last few days had seen her running through an entire gauntlet of emotions. From crying in despair, to wanting to rage at Natsu for being stupid, to wanting to scream at the feeling of helplessness that had engulfed her while she was recovering.

Because despite the agonizing Natsu shaped hole in her life, nothing else had actually changed.

They were still preparing for war. She was still wanted by the dark guilds they were preparing for. And one day soon they would try to come for her. Her friends and family would fight for her, and she could no longer keep back the worry that they might not all survive it.

And there was nothing she could do to stop it.

The feeling was driving her mad, and she itched to get up and do _something_. It didn't matter what at this point. She just needed to not be helpless.

She was a Heartfilia. She didn't do helpless very well.

"I know how you feel."

Lucy jerked her head up to find Mirajane standing by her bed holding a tray of food, and giving her a smile that was at once understanding and heartbreaking.

"Mira..." She blinked, scrambling to remember when the other woman had even walked in, "I..."

"It's okay." Mirajane soothed as she closed the distance and set the tray down at her bedside, "Believe me I know." Her smile shifted into something more amused as she sat down in one of the chairs next to her, "I'm not sure what details your book covers, but you know what happened to my powers for a while right?"

Lucy blinked again and nodded as the memory of that chapter clicked, "That's right! After Elfman's takeover went wrong when you were younger..." She checked herself a little, a blush coloring her cheeks, "Sorry. I didn't mean..."

Mirajane just laughed, "It's alright Lucy!" She hastily assured the younger mage, "I understand." She cocked her head slightly, "All I'm trying to say is I know how frustrating it is to feel helpless. Especially when you're hurting. You want to lash out, but you can't, and you wind up going in circles until you feel like you're going to crack."

She curled her hand around Lucy's, "But it's going to be alright. You won't be stuck in bed after today, and we _will_ find Natsu. Just try to hang on a little longer. Okay?"

Lucy looked up at Mirajane with watering eyes, but forced a smile to her face. After taking a few, steadying breaths, she was able to clear the weight from her lungs and hold onto her guildmate's hand with a little more steadiness than before.

"Thank you Mira, I really appreciate it," Lucy sighed and gestured to the stack of books beside her, "Levy gave me a few of these to read, and Virgo stopped by with a text on celestial magic."

"I've been trying to keep myself occupied, trying to study one of the next forms celestial magic can take," Lucy knew she was babbling, but it helped her feel a little more human, "It's called the Stardress."

"What's it do?" Mirajane asked with an indulgent smile, and Lucy was grateful for the distraction as she explained the curious details about it. In fact, she was a little curious if Mirajane could shed some light on some of the more difficult aspects of the magic that relied on transformation.

So they ducked their heads together, and soon Lucy was laughing and even relaxing a little as Mirajane teased and helped her figure out the new steps to advanced levels in Lucy's magic.

They stayed like that together for a while until around midday, when a strange humming noise pulled them from their studies.

"What's that?" Lucy asked, craning her head to the side to get a better look at out the window.

Mirajane frowned as she looked up, "I'm not sure." She replied as she got up and headed to the window, "It doesn't sound like an animal or magic mobile..."

"Well whatever it is it's getting louder." Lucy frowned and stubbornly got out of bed as well. She wasn't so much an invalid she couldn't handle a walk to the window at least.

"Lucy..." Mirajane said, the shaking tone making her pause before she'd gotten three steps, "Stay back from the window."

"Why?" Lucy asked in concern, "What's wrong?"

Whatever it was it had to be bad. Mirajane sounded frightened, and generally there wasn't much that could frighten the she-devil. That alone made her nervous. The look on her face when she turned back from the window sealed the deal though.

"Mira... what is it?"

In a flash Mirajane was striding from the window and curled her hand around Lucy's wrist, "C'mon." She said tensely, "I know you're still recovering, but you staying here isn't an option."

"Mira will you please tell me why?" Lucy pleaded, "What's going on?"

Mirajane glanced at her grimly, "That sound is the sound of Grimoire Heart's airship approaching. We're under attack."

Her eyes lifted towards Lucy and gave her a very subdued look.

"They've come for you."

-::-

"Happy we can't just leave them!" Romeo exclaimed over his shoulder as the blue kitten frantically flew him away from the explosions and sounds of battle going on behind them.

"We have to!" Happy cried back, trying not to let his tears actually fall and blind him, "Lucy said we gotta protect Asca, and Natsu's lair was the best place to do that!"

"But-!" The boy protested, and Happy met his eyes firmly, "We have to do what Lucy said!" He repeated, and something in his face must've bled through because Romeo quieted down and then nodded.

"Right. We'll protect Asca."

The blue kitten tried not to let his relief show as he continued flying, determined to at least make it to where Lucy said Natsu's lair was before he started crying. He had a job to do, and Lucy was counting on him.

Just the thought of her had fresh tears stinging in his eyes. She was like a surrogate big sister to him, and the thought of what might be happening to her now was killing him.

There had been two days of complete quiet after everyone had gone looking for Natsu, broken only by Lucy's depressed tears and the other's attempts to cheer her up, when an airship had appeared on the horizon. One that had quickly been identified as belonging to Grimoire Heart.

That fact alone had been enough to terrify him, but with so many of their strongest fighters gone, and unable to get back in time, they hadn't stood a chance.

Not that everyone hadn't fought hard, but when it became clear they were going to lose, Lucy had pulled him aside and given him directions to Natsu's lair with a plea to get Asca, Romeo, and Carla there safely in case her plan didn't work.

A plan that had consisted of her handing her keys over to Yukino and walking out onto the battlefield unarmed to give herself up on the condition they left Fairy Tail and Magnolia alone.

Happy didn't know if her plan worked or not, and he didn't know which scenario terrified him more. He just prayed with all his might that everything would be alright.

He managed to stumble through the magical barrier, small arms finally unable to support Romeo as he tumbled forward into a stack of glittering coin. Carla came to a stop closer to him, far more gracefully than Happy.

"Good we made it," Carla bit her lip, looking very concerned. Sweeping her eyes around, she took stock of the entrance of Natsu's cave.

"Yes, a dragon's protective spells, I think we'll be safe and hidden here," Carla murmured sadly, setting her hands on Asca's shoulders.

The girl looked frightened, but her lip trembled with bravery typical of a member of Fairy Tail.

"We wouldn't have been able to even find this place if Lucy hadn't told us about it," Romeo looked around in shock, unable to believe such a place even existed.

However their relief was short lived when the sliding of metal skittering across another metallic surface caught their attention.

Rising over a heap of jewels, Natsu stared blankly at the strange group greeting him.

He blinked blearily, the remnants of sleep and exhaustion clinging around his eyes. Slowly, his head tilted and he registered who the intruders were that woke him from his sleep. Normally he would have had a much more violent reaction to people invading his nest, or hell - even finding it, but he had been lacking so much energy as of late he hadn't been able to summon up enough to care.

So the sight of the gathered group pulled him up short.

"Happy...?" He voiced in confusion, slowly making his way down the mountain of treasure towards where the kitten was curled into a ball of misery.

Natsu quickly took stock of Happy, his expression clouded with worry, "Happy are you okay?"

"Natsu?" Happy whispered, hardly able to believe his eyes, and suddenly a burst of energy he didn't know he had hit him as he pounced on his best friend crying and screaming at the same time.

"Natsu! You dummy!" He shouted, pounding him on the chest even as his dragon's arms curled comfortingly around him, "You stupid, stupid, dummy! I thought I'd never see you again, and now Lucy's gone, and I don't know what to do!"

Natsu felt his heart freeze at Happy's words, and opened his mouth to ask him to explain when Romeo stepped forward.

"Grimoire Heart attacked." The boy reported grimly, "Everyone was out looking for you, and they showed up before they could come back. Lucy, Yukino, my dad, and everyone there tried to fight them off, but we weren't strong enough."

"Lucy sent us here." Happy sniffled, "She said you might hate her, but you probably wouldn't mind us hiding here." He looked wetly up at Natsu, "Natsu, why did you leave? Lucy's been crying ever since you left. She says it's all her fault you hate everyone now." His lip trembled, "You don't really hate everyone do you?"

Natsu swallowed tightly, his fingers curling into Happy's wet fur. Never before had he felt so cold. Not even in Lucy's strange world.

"I was angry," Natsu cradled the cat against his chest, "And I was ashamed."

He met Happy's eyes and hugged the sobbing cat to his chest, "I don't hate you or Lucy."

But because he had wasted time like this moping - Lucy was off doing something as foolish as fighting an entire dark guild with just a handful of guild members by her side? What a complete _idiot_!

The news others had gone off looking for him came as a surprise. After what he did, Natsu didn't think he would even be welcome back at the guild. Much less have the other dragons and guild members searching for him. Why would they bother?

Not that there wouldn't be punishment.

No.

Natsu shuddered to think of what would happen to him when Erza got her hands on him. Nothing he didn't deserve though.

Happy's earlier words belatedly caught up to him though and Natsu stopped still as every other thought flew from his mind.

"Wait, Lucy is _gone_?" Natsu demanded, his heart crawling up into his throat.

Romeo nodded, his arms wrapping around the trembling Asca, who was shifting closer to curl her fingers into Natsu's pants leg.

"She gave herself up without her keys to buy us time to get here," The boy said gravely.

Natsu felt as if the ground shook out from under his feet.

She did _what_!?

Rage and disbelief burst back into his chest, pouring more life through his veins than he had felt in what seemed like a small eternity.

He set Happy down and gently detached the children from his legs. One hand on each of their heads, he looked them in the eyes, "I'm going to fix this."

His resolve hardened in his chest.

No matter what he felt about Lucy, or how she felt about him, he was going to have to do something to save her. Because this wouldn't end with her surrender. It couldn't.

He loved her too much to just give up.

Romeo nodded as he took Happy from Natsu and curled him into his chest, "Grimoire Heart was still attacking the last time we saw Magnolia, but we don't know if it still is, or what happened after Lucy went out there."

Natsu nodded, his determination increasing. There was still a chance, however slim, that he could catch Grimoire Heart before they left the area.

"Alright. Follow the caves straight back." He said pointing in the right direction, "There's a bed and food and things in the very back. Stay there until I get back alright?"

He got four nods, and managed a small smile at their bravery, "I promise I'll be back with Lucy."

With that he turned and sprinted for the entrance. He reached inside as he ran, trying to touch that reluctant core that controlled his transformations, desperate to at least get his wings back. He was going to need them if he was going to keep his promise.

However, to his complete shock, the magic that had been fighting him for so long practically leapt into his mental hands and spread eagerly through him. It was different from his other changes as the magic was warm and seemed determined to help him succeed.

It had never done that before.

The effect was instantaneous though. He had red scales forming before he'd left the cave, and his body quickly followed in what was easily his fastest transformation ever. Within moments he was soaring towards Magnolia, a challenging roar bursting from his chest. His Fairy Tail emblem gleamed visibly against his scales as he took off after Lucy.

He was going to find her.

And when he did he was going to give that jerk Hades and everyone else a beating they wouldn't forget for taking her.

Then he was going to take Lucy home, and... well he wasn't sure what was going to happen then, but he was sure it would be _something_.

And maybe, just maybe, it would be possible for him to regain a little of what he'd lost and stop being the monster.

He knew he wasn't a hero. But he didn't have to be the villain anymore. Maybe after this it would be okay to just be Natsu of Fairy Tail.

That was, if they would still let him.

He roared out again, landing heavily in front of the battle-worn looking guild. His head swung from side to side, fighting to catch a wiff of that scent he knew so well.

The remaining guild members looked shocked at his sudden appearance, especially as that of a dragon. Natsu couldn't blame them, but aside from making sure he didn't accidentally step on one, he didn't care about them for the moment.

The wind shifted and Natsu's pupils dilated, catching the soft vanilla aroma that could only be Lucy. Even through the smoke and flames he could pick it out.

His talons dug deep trenches into the ground and he opened powerful wings, flapping off once again without so much as a word to the guild members gathered.

He had her scent. And Natsu knew with his sensitive nose, he could track her to the ends of the earth.

-::-

Lucy didn't know help was on the way, but that didn't make her any less defiant as she glared up at the master of Grimoire Heart.

"No." She spat at the man who had once been Fairy Tail's second master.

She felt a moment of supreme satisfaction at the surprise that flickered over the old bastard's face before scowled at her and the rest of Grimoire Heart closed in around her.

"That was not a request little girl." A dark haired woman that Lucy vaguely remembered from her initial arrival and who, up close, reminded her of Gray sneered at her, "That was an order. And you would do well to fulfill it."

Lucy transferred her glare to her, "I don't care what it was." She growled, "I'm not opening a gate!"

She could see the fury cross over their features and smirked, "Go ahead. Attack me. It won't change anything. I won't make your stupid gate for Zeref."

She might be heartbroken and depressed over Natsu, but there was no way in hell she was going to give Zeref the satisfaction of waltzing back into this world. He could rot in her old one for all she cared.

"This was not what we agreed upon when you surrendered yourself." Hades growled.

Lucy turned her best superior smirk on him, "Then you should've listened more closely. I said I'd give myself up without a fight. I never said I'd actually do what you wanted."

There was a scoffing shout of laughter at Lucy's defiance, a man with wild hair and blazing red eyes pushed into her personal space, "Wowwwww, girlie here is really kinda dumb."

"She really thinks she has a single card to play," He cackled madly, leaning back with his hands on his hips to laugh harshly.

"You may have stopped the Oracian Seis and tamed them, but I think you'll find Grimoire Heart is a bit of a different kind of animal," He taunted her cruelly.

Lucy didn't budge in the face of the man's laughter. Although she couldn't help the strange thrill of fear shiver down her spine.

"You need me to open your gate. You can't risk hurting me," Lucy's jaw locked, "And I won't open it unless you make me."

She nearly flinched back when temper flared to life in his furious eyes, but managed to hold onto her tongue. Just barely.

"Enough Zancrow," Hades ordered, his hand stroking down his beard, "Ultear. You know what to do."

He directed his whispered instructions over towards the woman by his side. Lucy remembered her from before, and Ultear's painted lips lifted at the corners and she disappeared for a moment.

"We have ways of making you do what we want," Hades sighed, "Although I hadn't wanted to resort to such nasty measures. Fairy Tail did use to be my old guild after all."

"Kain," He said with a snap to his fingers.

The large man that had attempted to carry Lucy off when she first landed, appeared. In his hands he was a small doll. Next to him Ultear reappeared, the familiar figure of Yukino struggling beside her. She was forced into Kain's hands and he dropped Yukino down in front of Lucy. The combination of their golden keys chimed together on a ring which dangled from one of Kain's large fingers.

"Did you really believe we wouldn't know what you did?" Ultear sneered, lifting the crystal lacrima up above her arm. It levitated through the air, leaving an image of Lucy playing backwards across its surface.

"We've been watching you and your plannings," Ultear chuckled, "And we weren't going to take you at your word that you would simply behave."

Yukino's eyes were wide and apologetic on Lucy, sitting stiffly in the chair thanks to whatever spell Kain had seemingly placed over her.

Lucy stared at Yukino in horror, "Yukino..." She breathed, "Are you alright?"

She obviously wasn't, but Lucy couldn't help asking anyway. She didn't see any visible wounds on her, and her clothes were intact beyond the damage taken when they were fighting. Which was a huge relief.

"I'm sorry Lucy." Yukino whimpered, "He caught me by surprise."

"It's alright..." Lucy began, but yelped when Yukino was jerkily forced to her feet.

"Oh I'm afraid it's not alright at all." Hades purred with a dark smirk, "Kain, have our lovely guest attack Lucy." His dark smirk widened at Lucy's startled look, "Let's see how well you do when you're fighting your friend. It will only end when she is dead or you agree to open the gate."

Lucy and Yukino stared at each other in horror before Lucy suddenly found herself having to defend herself from her friend.

"I won't hurt Yukino!" Lucy protested, but yelped when a crystal ball from the one calling herself Ultear, suddenly whizzed through the air, missing her head by an inch. It blew right into the other Yukino's side without any cushion between the impact.

Yukino let out a harsh cry of pain, and Lucy could practically feel the _crack_ when the blow connected. Her friend crumpled to the ground and Lucy ran straight for her, forgetting about Kain's influence for the second it took to see if she was okay.

She let out a gargle of pain when Yukino lashed upwards, puppeteered by Kain to strike her right in the throat. Tears stung at Yukino's eyes as she attacked, leaving Lucy scrambling away and gasping for breath.

"Do not forget Lucy, we need you alive to open the gate," Master Hades said softly, "No other requirement is needed - and we certainly don't need to treat your friend as delicately as you. So the pain she endures is entirely up to you."

"I-I'm fine Lu-Lucy, j-just get out of here," Yukino gasped.

"Not for long," Ultear laughed, the crystal ball descending once again onto Yukino, rooted where she stood. Lucy let out a scream of warning as she raced the ball to her friend, knowing no matter the outcome, they were both going to be in for some serious pain.

-::-

Behind the ship, and closing as fast as he could, Natsu tried to focus his worry about Lucy into more speed. He knew what those Grimoire Heart bastards were capable of. He'd fought them more than once, and they were no match for him in this form.

He just hoped he got there before they started getting sadistic.

He didn't even want to think about Lucy at their mercy when they were feeling creative. Her indirect encounter with _one_ of them had left her raw and hurt for the better part of a whole day afterwards.

A direct encounter might break her.

Rusty Rose still needed to pay for what he did to Lucy and pitting Midnight against her. But it wasn't just him. No.

No matter what their threats were, the love this dark guild held for Zeref would outweigh any threat to Lucy's life.

But that didn't mean they still couldn't torture her. Midnight on his own evil devices had made sure of that.

The ship came into view, and Natsu flattened his wings down, hurtling towards it like a bullet.

This was it. He might have been on his own. But if there was one thing he knew, it was that this guild couldn't do anything to harm him like this. However, if Tartarus showed up, things could get complicated...

But all he had to do was get Lucy now.

He wrapped his claws around the tail of the airship, mindful of the fact Lucy was somewhere within. As much as he would have loved to just smash it down to the earth, the chances of him retrieving Lucy unscathed were too minimal for him to take the risk.

Metal grinding, Natsu wrapped his jaws around the side, slamming down against the propellers to drag the ship grindingly back to the earth, lowering it bit by bit until it was grounded.

He stood over it to prevent its take off, knowing any damage done to the ship itself would only be temporary. They had ways of repairing it, no matter how many layers of metal he stripped away.

He dug trenches around it with his claws, burying it in enough earth to at least dissuade them from being able to take off immediately. Natsu chomped down on the propellers, ripping them out for an added measure.

Slowly, he tromped around the ship, golden eyes sharp and reptilian, anger coming off him in a wave.

" _ **Hades, I want Lucy!**_ " He snarled down into the ship, talons digging into the sides. Natsu knew the Guild Master could hear him from where he stood. But only silence greeted him from within the ship. Impatience licked at Natsu's throat.

He knew he would be unable to crack the airships hull open like an egg and just shake Lucy out. And Hades wouldn't be stupid enough to get out of the ship while a furious dragon was breathing down his neck. Which just left one option.

The hard way.

It was a good thing Natsu _loved_ the hard way.

He shifted down, releasing his hold on his transformation. As frustrating as it was to give up this shape when he could stomp the whole guild at once, this was the only way of rescuing Lucy safely.

He couldn't fish with hand grenades after all.

The strange way his transformations seemed to just work for him now was fascinating, he felt _everything_ in vivid detail, but Natsu didn't give himself enough time to truly enjoy being able to shift at will. He knew it had to do with his focus. He had a purpose, a drive, and a steady goal.

Natsu's thoughts were no longer in flux.

He could do this.

Natsu just hoped the ship would remain grounded long enough for him to get Lucy and get off the ship. Because the last thing he needed was for it to take off while he was still standing on it.

He dropped down onto the balls of his feet, landing on the deck, his scarf fluttering back around his shoulders, flapping in the wind. His eyes caught it, lingering over the blackness in the scales. They weren't the color of pitch anymore, but they still were missing the gleaming white luster he had grown accustomed to.

It showed every doubt and insecurity he possessed, burning it into the gray fabric like a reflection of his own heart. Natsu wanted to tear it off from around his neck, if nothing else than to prevent others from seeing it in such a sorry state. Before he hadn't known what it meant. But now he understood.

He was ashamed to know how close his scarf had come to completely unravelling.

Natsu pushed the thought to the side as he strode into Hades' lair. He could think about that stuff after he rescued Lucy and found out just what the hell she'd been thinking when she did this. Among other things...

He was surprised to find little resistance when he smashed his way inside. Hades tended to keep his ranks swelled with a bunch of weaklings he used as cannon fodder, but not one was to be found. In fact, the corridors were disturbingly empty.

His eyes narrowed as he reflexively went on high alert. In his experience easy tended to equal trap, and he'd learned the hard way that it was never a good idea to barrel into those blindly.

However, as he moved deeper into the bowels of the ship he heard the sounds of cheering, jeering, and fighting ahead. What the heck was going on? Were they making Lucy fight or something?

The thought made his heart freeze for a moment, and he swore softly as he sped up. That was _exactly_ the kind of thing these sick bastards would do. Especially with Lucy unarmed, and probably being stubborn and defiant like she always was.

He followed the sound until he tracked it to Hades' throne room or whatever the hell he called it only to have his sight blocked by the backs of those stupid robes the lower level members of the guild wore.

He caught Lucy's scent, and the scent of blood, over the other scents crammed in the room and just like that what little restraint he had snapped.

"Hey jerkface!" He snarled, grabbing the nearest minion as his fist lit up, "Get out of my goddamned way!"

A moment of supreme satisfaction rushed through him as he smashed his fist into his first victim. Now this was more like it!

The impact was enough to blow a hole straight through the ranks and give him a clear view of the 'arena' they'd been gathered around. The sight of which froze his blood solid.

There, huddled in the center of it, beaten and bloody, were both Lucy and Yukino. It was hard to tell who had been beaten worse, but both women were crying, and that was more than enough to enrage him.

 _ **"Hades!"**_ He roared, fire erupting from his body, _**"You're going to pay for this you bastard!"**_

He stormed forward, molten metal left in his wake, and terrified minions scattering, but Hades only smiled, "Welcome Natsu." He said calmly, "I was hoping you would arrive in time for the big event."

He gestured to the mostly formed gate he hadn't noticed before, "Lucy is nearly done with her gate. She agreed to create it to spare her friend any more pain."

"And it would be such a shame for you to miss your reunion."

Natsu stilled, his jaw going rigid. He dropped down next to Lucy, not daring to touch her when she was so bruised and battered.

"N-Natsu..?" Lucy looked at him with wide, teary eyes. She choked off as the gate finished glowing to life behind Natsu, but he paid no attention to it. His hands lifted and gingerly cradled the black and blue marks blooming across her pale cheeks.

"Y-you came?" She shook her bruised face, drawing a sob from the back of her throat. One that was echoed by Yukino.

Natsu's jaw twitched, hating the fact she would doubt him coming to her aid, but supposed that he gave her more than enough reason to be concerned.

"Yeah," Growling in the back of his throat, Natsu rose to his feet to confront the gate, "Don't worry Lucy, Yukino. We'll get out of this."

He didn't know how.

But that hardly mattered as a shadow began to emerge from the opposite side of the gate.

It was a figure Natsu remembered. A shape that began to grow with increasingly more clarity as he stepped through a swirl of beautiful colors cast by Lucy's magic.

The very sight of him sent a shiver of dread roaring through Natsu's veins.

Zeref.

 _ **End Act 3**_

* * *

 _ **HERE IS THE SNEAK PEEK BECAUSE HOLY SHIT GUYS. YOU GUYS CAME BACK IN FORCE. FOR OUR 2000th REVIEWER, WE WILL DO SOMETHING SPECIAL FOR YOU GUYS. A ONESHOT (maaaaybe illustrated. MAYBE) from within the parallels universe focused on whoever you want :) We will let you know if you take that spot!  
**_

 _He eyed Kain contemplatively for a moment and a black orb appeared in his hand, "I do not approve of anyone upsetting my brother by hurting his lover." He stated calmly, but the look in his eyes spoke of a boiling rage that convinced anyone looking he and Natsu really were related._

 _Lucy ducked instinctively as the orb sailed over her head in a blink and smashed into Kain. She flinched at the sound of his pained screams, not daring to look up, and cringed even further back when she heard footsteps approaching them._

 _Zeref, however, simply bent over and picked up the keys before dangling them in front of Lucy, ignoring his brother's warning growls, "Here." He said gently, all traces of anger gone, "It would be a shame for you to lose these."_

 _Lucy stared at the dark wizard she'd heard so much about in shock, not able to believe what she was seeing. Surely it was all a trick?_


	50. Holes

**_Act 4_**

 ** _SPECIAL THANKS TO AJDRAKES! She drew us some art of Natsu in his dragon form! It's on my tumblr if you want to see it!_**

 ** _(You guys totally should)_**

* * *

 ** _50_**

 ** _Holes_**

 _"When you spend your whole life living in a hole," he said, "the only way you can go is up."_

― Louis Sachar, **_Holes_**

* * *

Zeref stepped calmly through the gate, a small smile on his face, and looked around. He was tremendously pleased to see Natsu there, the look of shock on his face was quite amusing, and it made him wish he'd brought a camera.

Less amusing, however, were the two young women Natsu was hovering over so protectively. He could sense Natsu's distress, and it was easy to tell why. Their states were deplorable. Particularly Lucy's as that was likely the source of most of Natsu's upset.

He frowned at the sight and looked at Hades, "What is the meaning of this?" He asked, his tone deceptively mild, "I was not expecting to find young Lucy in such a state when I arrived."

Hades went pale at the disapproval, "A-apologies Lord Zeref!" He exclaimed, "The girl refused to open the gate after surrendering herself! She required persuasion."

Zeref's eyes narrowed, "Persuasion in the form of forced combat?" He asked, looking at Kain and the curse doll still in his hands, "I see."

He eyed Kain contemplatively for a moment and a black orb appeared in his hand, "I do not approve of anyone upsetting my brother by hurting his lover." He stated calmly, but the look in his eyes spoke of a boiling rage that convinced anyone looking he and Natsu really were related.

Lucy ducked instinctively as the orb sailed over her head in a blink and smashed into Kain. She flinched at the sound of his pained screams, not daring to look up, and cringed even further back when she heard footsteps approaching them.

Zeref, however, simply bent over and picked up the keys before dangling them in front of Lucy, ignoring his brother's warning growls, "Here." He said gently, all traces of anger gone, "It would be a shame for you to lose these."

Lucy stared at the dark wizard she'd heard so much about in shock, not able to believe what she was seeing. Surely it was all a trick?

She glanced at Natsu, who was growling darkly at his brother and then reached out to quickly snatch them from Zeref, more than a little afraid she would be fried next given the way things had fallen out between her and Natsu.

The dark wizard merely smiled at her, as if he'd read her thoughts and found them amusing, "It's truly a pleasure to meet you Lucy Heartfilia. I'm only sorry it wasn't under better circumstances."

He glanced at his brother, "As it seems you've chosen to forgive her for her deception... you should probably get the ladies to a healer little brother." He smiled beatifically at Natsu, "Though I'm very glad to see you again as well."

Natsu was tense, a trickle of sweat running down his temple and into his scarf. Understanding and rage warred through him at Zeref's words.

He had been played.

This whole time.

That dream he had. The one in the library. Zeref had done this on purpose. Shock shot through his nerve endings, and Zeref's smile merely grew calmly.

Zeref did this all on purpose. In the hopes this very thing would happen. That Natsu would leave Lucy unguarded, that Fairy Tail would scatter looking for him. To leave their home vulnerable to attack.

Zeref manipulated the whole thing.

Anger throbbed just under his skin, fury making itself known in the blaze of his eyes and the veins pulsing at his temples. Natsu's heart raced even as he was desperate to reign in his temper.

Even with one of the Seven Kin dead, Natsu didn't stand a chance against both the remaining members of Grimoire Heart and Zeref.

Especially not with two injured and battered women.

"You're just letting us go?" Natsu snarled quietly.

Zeref looked thoughtful, his eyes dark as they trailed over Natsu's scarf before landing on the woman beside his brother.

"For now," Zeref allowed.

He stepped towards Natsu, his hands lifting to set on his little brother's scowling face. Zeref's touch was icy against Natsu's natural heat, but neither seem interested in that.

Natsu's entire body coiled for a fight, but he didn't leap backwards or smack Zeref's hands away in favor of remaining where he was. Guarding Lucy and Yukino.

"We have all the time in the world to catch up now," Zeref's eyes glittered.

He stepped away and raised both palms to the wall, "In fact, I'll make it easy for you. A gate, straight back to your precious Fairy Tail."

Faster than what even Lucy could generate, a gate snapped open.

On the other side of the magic, they could see the battleground of Fairy Tail and the shocked faces of their guild members that greeted them on the other side. A doorway between them had suddenly opened up.

Natsu was not stupid.

This was a display of power.

And in some ways it was even more frightening than if Zeref had decided to kill them on the spot.

Because it told Natsu, Zeref would be able to find him no matter where he went in the world. He could be by his brothers side in an instant.

There was no escape.

So Natsu growled and reconsidered smashing a flaming fist into his brother's face. Instead he decided to take Zeref's offer. Bending down next to Lucy, he scooped her into his arms and over his shoulder. Yukino went over the other.

Puffing out a breath, Natsu turned towards the gate.

"This ain't over Zeref," He growled quietly.

"Of course not little brother." Zeref agreed amenably as they passed through the gate, "But I have a number of things to attend to first. I'm sure you understand."

He smiled again at the stunned Fairy Tail and snapped the gate shut.

Shocked and horrified silence reigned among the guild for a long moment, "Was... was that...?" Macao whispered, unable to even put words to what he'd seen.

"Yeah." Natsu replied, a trifle shortly, as he found the softest bit of ground he could and gently set Lucy and Yukino down, "It's a long story. Is Wendy still around?"

That drew everyone's attention to the reason he wanted to know, but before anyone could say anything a small blue and white missile shoved its way through the crowd and half tackled Natsu, "You're back!"

Natsu couldn't help smiling a little at the reception, and rubbed his hand over Wendy's head, "Yeah." He agreed, fresh guilt twisting in him at the sight of her worry, "I'm back. I'll explain everything later. Can you look at Lucy and Yukino for me right now?"

Wendy gasped and nodded, "Of course! I'll do my best!"

She was low on power after dealing with the battle, but for Lucy and Yukino she would drain herself dry. It was because of Lucy that she had a nest again, and Yukino gave her hope that one day she would find a permanent love too.

Lucy stared at Natsu, tears gathering in her eyes even as Wendy's healing washed over her, "Natsu... I'm sorry."

She choked a little on a sob, "I'm so sorry! I should've told you about the book sooner! I didn't mean it like that. I swear!" She met his eyes, dangerously close to babbling as she tried to get everything out, "I haven't read it in months. Not since we met Gajeel. I was going to show you so we could read it together..."

It was hard to stutter out the apology, but Lucy was half afraid Natsu would disappear again the instant he knew they were okay.

He wasn't saying anything though, and that frightened Lucy even more as they stared at one another. Natsu's eyes were very dark, even if his expression was far more readable than it had been last time they saw one another.

There wasn't any anger on his face. None.

Instead all she saw were his dark eyes, watching her with such intensity she thought she would burst into flame.

"Nats-" She tried, but he shook his head.

"Focus on getting patched up Lucy," He said patiently, fingers curling into his scarf. Not once did his eyes flicker away from hers.

"We can talk about it later, alright?" He said quietly.

Natsu wasn't entirely certain he would be sticking around. However this played out, he would have to tread carefully. In the meantime, he had to inform the guild about what happened, then locate Sting...

He wasn't too thrilled about letting him know what happened to Yukino.

Lucy's mouth snapped shut and she dropped her gaze as she nodded quietly. Her heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vice. She wasn't convinced there _would_ be a later. He'd already proved he had no problems with walking out of her life, and though he'd rescued her and Yukino that didn't mean he'd really forgiven her. Or ever would.

However, she kept it to herself as best she could. He'd made it clear he wasn't going to talk about it now, and the last thing she could handle at the moment was another fight. So when Wendy had them healed enough they could wobble their way to a place to lie down in the overcrowded infirmary she went without a murmur of protest.

She just didn't have the energy for anything else.

She curled up on her cot, smiling wanly at Wendy in thanks for her help, and hoped her shaking would be overlooked in the general chaos going on around them. Or at least ignored as something other than tears.

It was a futile hope of course, but her family let her cry in peace for the moment, and politely pretended they didn't notice for now.

More than one silently promised to pound Natsu if they didn't work things out soon though. More than the pounding he was already going to get anyway.

Natsu for his part, retreated back up to the roof of the damaged guild hall, having barely been put back together since the first attack from the Oracian Seis.

In fact he probably shouldn't have even been sitting on it considering its weak structural integrity, but he had always been one to ignore something as inconsequential as a safety hazard.

He would have been content to just sit there and brood while he waited for Lucy to recover, but it seemed that was not what was in the cards for him.

He was joined by the unexpected form of Wendy, scooting up onto the roof, light as a feather and as fast as a breeze.

She sat down next to him, tucking her legs up around her small body and leaning against Natsu's shoulder. Immediately he lifted his arm and pulled her into his side. His chest already felt less constrictive.

"Is she going to be okay? Yukino too?" Natsu asked. Wendy's affirming nod made the tension in his gut uncoil. Physically, she would recover. They both would.

But he did not doubt that the experience at Grimoire Hearts hands had left their mark. Such things always did.

"What about you Wendy? Carla told me you fought too, you okay?" Natsu pulled away enough to look at the hatchling's tired face.

Wendy just smiled and nodded at him, "Yeah. I'm alright. But I'm glad you saw Carla. Lucy said she was going to send them to your hoard. I guess that's where you were this whole time."

Natsu huffed out a sound that sounded dismal even to himself.

"You and Lucy will make up," Wendy seemed to read into his quiet sighs.

"It wouldn't hurt to apologize though," Wendy nudged him with her shoulder and Natsu snorted.

"You think she'd forgive me? I burned her," Natsu mumbled, ashamed he had lost control of his magic for even a moment. His head was still trying to wrap itself around what Lucy said.

She hadn't read the book since they met Gajeel? She had wanted to read it together? But why?

Wendy just shrugged.

"I think you both have a lot to say you're sorry about," She smiled and took his hand, giving his larger one a small squeeze.

"But you'll both be okay. And we'll stop Zeref too," She said with a firmness Natsu admired.

"Yeah," Natsu murmured, his eyes sliding shut.

"Breeze feels nice," he noted.

"Yes, it does."

* * *

 _ **I answered this question on tumblr, but a lot of people are asking about why Natsu didn't read about Lucy's feelings in the book. It doesn't update that specifically about her. She's still a new character as well as its caretaker. She hasn't been involved in the story enough. Also, it doesn't update THAT often. It does large chunks at once.**_

 _ **HERE IS YOUR WELL DESERVED SNEAK PEEK! ALL YOU GUYS REVIEWED SO MUCH! OMG!**_

* * *

 _He headed over to Lucy, pleased to see that she was looking a lot healthier, physically at least, in the two days since he'd brought her back, "You up for a walk or somethin' Lucy?"_

 _She stared up at him uncomprehendingly for a moment, and he winced mentally at the sight of her red eyes, before his words penetrated and mingled hope and fear crossed her face as she quickly nodded and got up._

 _"Yeah." She replied, though even her voice sounded weird. Not at all as confident as it should. Though it lacked the anger he'd been expecting._

 _Was she really that upset? Or was she that afraid of him? He wasn't sure which, and either possibility made his gut twist._

 _Regardless, it was time to face the music._


	51. Emma

_**Act 4**_

 _ **WARNING: NSFW BELOW.**_

 _ **PLEASE WATCH FOR PURITY MARKS '####'**_

* * *

 _ **51**_

 _ **Emma**_

 _"_ _Why not seize the pleasure at once? - How often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation!"_

―Jane Austen _ **,**_ _ **Emma**_

* * *

Natsu heaved a sigh as Sting pushed past him to rush to Yukino's side.

He'd done as he'd promised himself and had tracked down and informed Sting of what had happened to his wife. Once the white dragon had finished roaring at him for being an idiot anyway. Though he was starting to think Sting might be right.

He hadn't pulled Lucy aside to talk yet, and the tension was becoming palpable. She hadn't tried to corner him or anything, but he knew she was watching him with that sad expression whenever she thought he wasn't looking.

It was almost unnatural. She was never this quiet for this long. She should be getting in his face and demanding an apology from him. Not... just sitting there like the world had ended.

He growled softly to himself, and decided that even if she never forgave him they needed to talk about this. He needed to at least apologize for what he did to her. Because it couldn't continue on like it was.

He headed over to Lucy, pleased to see that she was looking a lot healthier, physically at least, in the two days since he'd brought her back, "You up for a walk or somethin' Lucy?"

She stared up at him uncomprehendingly for a moment, and he winced mentally at the sight of her red eyes, before his words penetrated and mingled hope and fear crossed her face as she quickly nodded and got up.

"Yeah." She replied, though even her voice sounded weird. Not at all as confident as it should. Though it lacked the anger he'd been expecting.

Was she really that upset? Or was she that afraid of him? He wasn't sure which, and either possibility made his gut twist.

Regardless, it was time to face the music. Natsu's shoulders slouched down as they headed out of the guild. They were both quiet when they walked a distance away, down the cobbled streets of Magnolia.

An uneasy silence stretched between them, neither knowing what to say first to break the awkward atmosphere thickening around them like a fog.

For his part, Natsu thought his vocal cords were going to shrivel into raisins at this rate.

But he was the one to ask her to this walk. So he would be the one to speak first.

Stopping them near Magnolia's prized cherry blossom grove, he wet his lips and looked at Lucy. The blossoms were long since dead, leaving only frost and the skeletons of trees. It ensured they would at least be private since the trees laid dormant this time of year.

"I'm sorry," He burst out in a rush of air, his lungs burning with regret around the words.

"I burned you bad Lucy, and I'm so sorry I hurt you like that," Natsu murmured, pulling his gaze away from her face, too ashamed to even look at her.

"I don't know why you never told me about the book," Natsu said harshly to get around the tightness in his throat, "And I don't know what your feelings about me really are, but I-..."

Lucy grabbed his wrist, surprising him and cutting off his words, "I'm not mad at you." She whispered, ducking her head so her bangs covered her eyes, "Not for that. It was an accident. You warned me, but I pressed anyway, and..." She trailed off and shook her head.

Her grip on him loosened and the scent of fresh tears hit his nose, "I wasn't hiding the book maliciously." She continued, her voice thick with emotions he couldn't quite untangle.

"That book was what triggered my magic. It was part of what made me fall into this world. I showed it to Master Makarov and the others the day we arrived at Fairy Tail. They told me it was special, and that I had to protect it. You hated me back then. I kept it secret to protect it from you."

"Then afterwards..." Her shoulders shook and she looked up to meet his face, her expression the most open and raw he'd ever seen, "I was stupid!"

She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to contain her grief and upset, "Everyone else accepted that I was the book's keeper. The guild archivist. The keeper of Fairy Tail's history."

"I was dumb enough to think you would accept it too. That you would be proud, and would like reading our story when it updated, together." She laughed harshly, looking away again, "It was supposed to be romantic."

She scrubbed at her eyes, "But it doesn't matter now does it?" She asked, sounding broken in a way that shattered Natsu's heart, "You're still going to leave me again aren't you?"

She... really hadn't read it? Natsu's heart throbbed with hope and he cupped her cheeks in his hands, guiding her startled face up towards his. He hadn't even known about the 'magic' of the book.

He immediately wanted to believe her. Even if it was a pretty lie, it sounded so nice coming from her mouth.

Even if she wasn't telling the truth, Natsu didn't think he would care. Because Lucy was his friend just as much as she was his love. But it hardly mattered, because when he looked in her eyes and found no deception. Just heartbroken honesty.

He felt like something lifted off his shoulders, disbelief that someone like Lucy could truly exist shuddering through him.

He pressed his forehead down against hers and closed his eyes, "I thought you were trying to use me. I thought it was all some elaborate trick, because I was stupid and didn't think anyone could really-..."

He cut himself off when he heard Lucy's sharp intake of breath. He couldn't help but let loose a ragged laugh of his own.

"I'm such an idiot, it was so _easy_ to believe," He murmured. Zeref got in his head and Natsu let himself be fooled. Natsu doubted like the moron he was, and it had been the direct result of his own insecurities.

"I came back for you because I love you," He growled quietly, "But I left because I was ashamed for hurting you. If you want me to stay..." He trailed off.

Lucy wrapped her arms tightly around him and buried her face in his neck, sobbing into it as his warm, smoky, scent hit her nose, "You promised!" She cried, "You promised you wouldn't leave! Please don't leave again. I couldn't stand it if I lost you again. I love you."

Natsu felt his heart twist even as it tried to beat out of his chest. She loved him. Those beautiful words had left her perfect lips. And this time, he believed them.

He held her close, a soothing growl rumbling in his chest, "I'm sorry Lucy." He whispered, gently rubbing her back, "I broke my promise."

He gently rubbed her back and caressed her cheek with a smile, "Will you give me a chance to make it up to you? To prove I won't break it again?"

A smile, a real smile, broke out over her face for the first time since he'd rescued her and suddenly she was kissing him, and it was wonderful, and perfect, and why hadn't they done this sooner?

It was salty and sweet, and he knew instantly that she did forgive him, for everything, and that they would be alright. Heck they would probably be even stronger.

But he didn't worry about that. He was much more interested in the feel and taste of her lips on his and her body in his arms. He loved her and she loved him, and suddenly he wanted to prove it in every way possible.

Natsu deepened the kiss by running his tongue across the seam of her lips. It added to the desperation of finally being reunited over being apart and fighting. Their uncertain future in the face of an enemy greater than Zeref.

They had damaged themselves worse than anyone else could have. But now they were set on fixing it. Natsu backed Lucy up against one of the trees, his fingers threading with Lucy's and curling her hands to his chest.

He was reluctant to part from her for even a second, and he savored every sweet taste of her mouth.

Lucy was much the same. She could hardly believe he was back in her arms. Their home was complete again, and this time there was no room for the whispers of the past to tear them apart.

Doubt had been banished once more from this, and Lucy was certain it would not return.

But it broke her heart a little to know Natsu had been so certain no one could truly love him, that finding the book would be enough to drive him away. That saddened her more than words could say.

But they had persevered together. It was the last, healing piece sliding into place.

Natsu's hard body pressed into hers invitingly, his heat rolling off him in waves of comfort and safety. Her arms circled around his shoulder, hands pulling on the back of his neck.

His chest and hips came in close to press flush against hers, and when they parted for breath, Natsu's mouth sank down to Lucy's throat.

His lips brushed promises into her skin, his gentle bites were vows never to leave her, and a caressing tongue under her ear was a silent declaration of his love.

And she believed every unspoken word. Because Natsu had always been a man of action.

####

"Natsu..." Lucy breathed softly, suddenly no longer exhausted as heat stirred to life in her. She'd been cold since their fight began, but now her dragon was pressed against her, running his lips over her skin, and gently caressing her.

It was like stepping out of the air conditioning on a summer's day in all the best ways.

She moaned softly as he hit a particularly sensitive spot and pulled him closer as the fire grew and spread, "Natsu!" She whimpered, panting softly into his ear, and suddenly he pulled away to crash their mouths together hungrily.

That turned the fire into an inferno and suddenly she was kissing him as if she would never be able to kiss him again while her hands roamed over every inch of him she could reach, sliding under clothes and caressing skin.

She wanted him. She _needed_ him. She needed to feel for herself that he was there, and he loved her, and their bond was still intact.

She gasped into his mouth, hardly noticing his tongue sweeping in, when his hot fingers slid under her skirt and began to rub her. Never had she been more grateful for the fact she wore skirts if it gave him easy access like that!

Still, the leggings she wore to ward off the frosty bite of the wintery air did manage to deter his burning touch. But the layers were thin enough for her hips to roll towards him in a frustrated wave.

He swallowed her keens with the greed she would have expected from a dragon, her fingers fisting into his shirt to pull him to her closer.

Lucy's other arm looped around Natsu's shoulders, bracing herself against him so her leg could slide up and give him better access.

" _Lucy_ ," Natsu growled into her lips. Vibrations ricocheted off the roof her mouth, his other hand palming the globe of her rear and keeping her thigh suspended.

"Can I...?" He asked her, trailing off.

But his intentions boiled beneath his gaze, searing every inch of Lucy's skin. Her clothes felt constrictive, hot, and like wool against her skin despite the frosty temperatures. Because under Natsu's gaze, she _burned_.

"Yes, please," Lucy held onto him, her hand groping blindly for his. Their fingers threaded together, "Lets go home."

Natsu stared at her for a moment, surprise flickering over his face before a wide grin split it in two. He quickly wrapped his arms around her and scooped her up into his arms. He could get them home much faster, and he wasn't interested in taking any longer than he had to.

"Hold on." He purred at her and felt a fresh surge of desire ripple through him when she did as he asked.

He could smell her. He could smell her heat. Her need. Even through the cold it teased and taunted him, driving him wild.

And the fact that she was feeling it now, right after they'd just made up, made it even sweeter.

He sprinted towards their apartment in record time, uncaring of any noise they made or who was in the way. He had to have her. Right _now_.

He rushed through the door, kicking it closed behind him, and absently spat a fire into the fireplace as he carried her to the bed and gently laid her down on the bed. He pulled back for a moment, despite the aching hardness in his pants, to just look at her and marvel that she'd forgiven him. That she truly loved him. It was still a little unbelievable given everything that had happened, but he would take it with both hands.

He tugged off his shirt before joining her on the bed, moving to hover over her, "Lucy..." He growled hotly, aching to just tear her clothes off and bury himself into her warmth, but his hands moved slowly over her.

He wanted to savor this for as long as he could.

"I'm not giving you up," He growled lowly as he gently tugged her shirt of and curled his hands around her perfect breasts.

"Promises, promises," Lucy teased back at him, a breathless giggle bursting from her throat. He snorted back at her, blowing a lock of her hair out of her face with a gust of air.

Natsu's lips curved into a smile as he recaptured Lucy's. Their kiss was sloppy and warm, filled with laughter and every now and then an accidental nip.

Lucy could feel Natsu's heated body, flushed and firm against hers. His large hand mapped across her chest, squeezing and rolling a calloused thumb across her nipple. Her back arched up off the mattress. This time her nails scored across his bare chest, fingers digging into thick muscle.

Natsu let out a surprised sounding groan, his stomach tensing in excitement as he went still. Lucy's eyes gleamed at the sight and she took advantage of his distraction to push his side with her knee and flip them over.

With some creative wiggling, she managed to get out of both her leggings and underwear. She settled herself comfortably over Natsu's hips, a breathless smile on her face.

Her dragon looked stunned, but by the hardness she felt grinding into her thigh, Lucy was certain he wasn't opposed to this turn.

He grinned back at her, his eyes raking across her body with a glint in his eyes she could almost label as hungry.

"Lucy, you're amazing," He breathed at her, his hands dropping down at her thighs.

The intensity behind his gaze made Lucy feel a little shy, but the little circles Natsu drew into her skin grounded her.

"If you stare any harder at me you're going to set me on fire," Lucy teased, rolling her hips down against his. Perhaps it was childish to say she enjoyed the strangled sounding hiss that came from Natsu at the way her hips slowly circled and ground down against his clothed member.

"N-not the only thing that'll be set on fire at this r-rate," Natsu struggled to grit out through clenched fangs, his eyes nearly black as they watched her hips gyrate against him.

Lucy laughed a little at the look on his face, but sobered as she remembered that she'd come very close to never seeing it again. She leaned over and kissed him softly, pouring everything she was feeling into it as she began running her hands down his chest to his pants.

Natsu wrapped his arms around her as their kiss deepened, entire conversations being swapped between them and taking up so much of his attention he hardly noticed what she was doing until she pulled away to finish tugging his clothes off.

"Lucy..." He breathed, marveling at her beauty and that despite everything they were here together like this. She smiled back at him and stretched out beside him, curling one leg over his hip.

"My Natsu." She replied, though it was far more tentative than he liked.

He growled softly as he curled his hand around her hip and tugged her close, "Yours." He agreed, and pulled her into another kiss.

He would prove it to her.

He would show her that he was hers. That he loved her, and would never leave her again.

Natsu groaned softly as she shifted so he could sink into her depths. She was so tight and hot in a way that had nothing to do with his flames. It was the sweetest, most agonizing, kind of torture imaginable, and he held her tightly as he took a moment to savor it.

"Lucy..." He breathed, a tiny puff of smoke escaping his lips as he slowly began to move. He whimpered softly at the feel of her caressing his entire length and felt something sharp hit him at the thought he'd almost lost this. Almost given it up entirely.

Somehow that made the feeling of her even better.

"Natsu..." She breathed back, and he couldn't help capturing her lips in a fierce kiss as she rocked her hips against his.

"I love you." He whispered, trailing soft kisses down the side of her neck and to her shoulder, "My Lucy. My Queen. I'm sorry."

She curled her fingers into his hair and opened her mouth, perhaps to say something, but all that came out was a gasp as he curled one hand around a breast and massaged teasingly.

He chuckled softly against her skin and nipped lightly at it before rolling her back on the bed. He curled her legs around his hips and descended on her. Though he didn't hurry despite the side of him whining at him with impatience.

He intended to take his time. He intended to _worship_ her like the goddess she really was.

Natsu made good on his promise too, twining them together under their covers until they were so firmly joined it was hard to tell where one began and the other ended.

They wound together, hot rushes of air shared between their gasping mouths. It was nothing short of torture to take his time, alternating between slow, rough grinds and shallow thrusts.

Every inch of her skin he could reach, Natsu tasted, his hands roaming over her hips and underneath her. It wasn't just the fire simmering in his belly that made him want to savor her, but the feeling of being together. The intimacy of being joined, as close as they could be was drugging.

His heightened senses were focused entirely on her until the press of her heels into the back of his thighs encouraged him to go faster, harder.

Natsu complied, his jaw locking at the feeling of electricity jolting through his body in hot sparks. Together, they chased their highs, wrapped up in the feel of one another's arms.

The build up was so slow, so sweet in its agonizing build up, that when they both toppled over the edge they made together, neither could speak.

####

Lazy smiles greeted the other, Natsu's fingers pulling aside a sweaty lock of blond hair from Lucy's face. He pressed a light kiss against her mouth, sighing happily as he took in her scent. Never again would he fight like this with her. He had learned his lesson.

When they were through, Natsu puffed out a sleepy breath against Lucy's neck, his eyelids heavy but his body contented. His heartfelt tender, but whole. Like a freshly healed wound. Everything was right now.

Lucy shifted against him, laughing quietly over her good fortune that Happy was off making wild bets with Macao and Cana. Natsu couldn't help but agree.

He released Lucy from where he was caging her against the bed when she began to wiggle, twisting out from under his arm and reaching into her nightstand.

Her eyes lifted towards his and Natsu couldn't help but tense warily when he saw her withdraw the book.

She bit her lip and looked at him shyly, "It's heavier than before..."

Natsu raised an eyebrow as she dragged the tome over to them, cracking it open on their stomachs. With a huff, Natsu pushed them both upright so they could sit down with their backs against the headboard.

He wrapped his arms around Lucy, dragging her against his chest and dropping his chin on her shoulder.

"It updated?" He asked for clarification. Lucy nodded, seeming to relax once his arms were around her and not putting distance between them.

It seemed to soothe the last bit of tension from them as she looked at him and smiled.

"Do you want to read it together?" She asked.

Natsu snorted, his grip tightening around her waist and his heart feeling very full.

"I'm not much for reading," He drawled against Lucy's cheek, "So why don't you read it to me?" He grinned.

Lucy's entire countenance seemed to light up and his heart beat traitorously in his chest.

"Alright" She laughed, leaning over to peck him lightly.

* * *

 _ **Thank you to everyone who reviewed! We didn't have enough for a sneak peek! Apologies my loves! I hope this satisfied you well enough though!**_

 _ **For readers old and new, here is a reminder:** PARALLELS UPDATES ONCE EVERY TWO DAYS._


	52. Outlander

_**Act 4**_

 _ **10 chapters left**_

* * *

 _ **52**_

 _ **Outlander**_

 _"Even when I've just left ye. I want you so much my chest feels tight and my fingers ache with wanting to touch ye again."_  
 _―_ Diana Gabaldon, _**Outlander**_

* * *

Natsu settled into a nest of blankets, his arms wrapped around Lucy as he held her with lazy happiness. He felt warm, and Lucy's body felt perfect pressing into his like a mold.

She nestled back into him, pinching at his side to get him to move and ignoring his frustrated yelps and whines as he shifted away. Drowsily, he dropped his chin against her shoulder and her fingers dragged across the updated page.

It seemed whenever a new chapter in their lives drew to a close, the book updated.

One adventure later, or something new on the horizon, it didn't matter. The book was an empirical record. And now, Natsu could see the value in such a thing.

Lucy relaxed into the pillows, curling up enough to tuck her knees lightly into Natsu's stomach, twisting her shoulders around to face him.

It dislodged Natsu and he dropped his head on the pillows, whining in the back of his throat in protest.

"Shush, or don't you want to see what it said?" Lucy pressed a finger to his lips, letting out a shriek when Natsu sucked the digit into his mischievous mouth.

He cackled a bit, his fangs nipping at her finger before she pulled away and wiped her hand on Natsu's side of the blanket.

"Ew!" Lucy squealed, laughing at how Natsu was lunging towards her and peppering soft kisses against her throat.

Their laughter subsided and she looked into the book, knowing the chapter which had just passed them would be a dark one. She was grateful for the warmth and steady beat of Natsu's heart next to her ear to ground her into the moment.

 _As Lucy and Natsu began to travel together, going on more and more adventures together, it seemed almost natural for their bond to deepen. Suddenly they became a pair neither was seen without, and not just because of their supposed bond. Love stemmed between them, strong, deep and true, even if those words had yet been unrealized._

 _However, whispers followed Natsu's thoughts. Burying themselves deep in his subconscious, pushing against the barriers blocking his mind to their dark touch. But the dragon was overcome by love and joy, falling into the embrace of Lucy over and over again, and kept the whispers out. Without pause, he found himself more in love with her as each day passed._

"Oh my god," Lucy whispered, her face turning red. Natsu for his part, did not look surprised.

 _It was a love Lucy herself mirrored. Time, friendship, and slowly built trust had morphed into a love unlike any she'd ever known. But for all her devotion, she did not realize her dragon was not as healed of his past pain as he seemed. And so, when Natsu's dreams were invaded by Zeref, and his doubts brought to the surface..._

Lucy blinked in shock at that and looked up at him, "Zeref invaded your dreams?" She asked in horrified concern.

Natsu shifted uncomfortably, but nodded, "Yeah." He sighed, gently running his hand over her shoulder, "I'm still a demon, and because of that I have a connection to my bastard brother."

He pressed his forehead against hers, just needing to feel her near, "Normally, I can't hear his whispers. But, the stuff Cobra said... It was bugging me so much my guard must've slipped. That's how I knew where to find the book."

Lucy reached out and caressed his cheek gently before pulling him into a soft kiss, "That really worries me." She admitted, concern bright in her eyes, "But we'll find a way to deal with it." She smiled a little, "I'm sure Master or Jellal will have a few ideas."

Natsu stared at her for a moment and then relaxed, a feeling of relief coursing through him at her calm assertion. He was still part of the nest. He'd known that already, but it was nice to have Lucy affirm it like that.

"Yeah." He grinned back at her and snuggled close again, "Let's keep reading."

Lucy smiled back and turned her attention back to the book.

 _It was through Zeref that Natsu learned of Lucy's one secret. One initially kept to protect the treasure she'd been entrusted with from him. She had stopped reading the updates of her magical book, wishing to keep the story of her and her dragon unread as a surprise to be read together, and so had no way of knowing the intimate details Natsu would discover within its pages._

Natsu huffed out a soft breath at the words displayed so clearly on the pages. He growled at the book, feeling like that was its own way of calling him an idiot.

Of course he had been, but that wasn't the point.

 _As doors opened both ways, Zeref knew precisely what to do with the book. It was a perfect way to drive the two lovers apart and leave Lucy vulnerable for him to sweep in to force her to open a gate. One which could lead him home to his family._

 _Demonic fury, uncontrolled with the sting of heartbreak and betrayal shocked Natsu. The fight between the two was terrible, and Natsu's magic, raw and unfocused in his disbelief, injured Lucy enough his shame and hurt drove him away. He witnessed the pain in Lucy's eyes, and saw himself for what he always had believed he was: a monster._

 _But not one created by the hands of others. One of his own making. And he was disgusted in himself._

Lucy's fingers combed through pink locks of hair, seeing plainly how Natsu still hated himself for her burns. No matter how accidental they had been, Lucy was sure he would never entirely forgive himself for what had happened.

 _Eventually though, the news of the dark guild's attack brought to Natsu by Happy was enough to galvanize him back into action. Nothing could see Lucy being hurt again. And while he still nursed a broken heart, Natsu could not deny how thoroughly he loved her. Or how he would do everything within his power to protect her._

 _But it was too late. Zeref had arrived, and in a rare form of mercy, let them go. He believed Natsu would come to him in due time. And together they would be a family. So the dark mage felt no worry in having his brother soon by his side._

"Fat chance," Natsu grumbled.

Lucy smiled at him, but didn't do anything more besides snuggle closer to him, "We should talk with Master and the others about this." She murmured her expression turning worried, "If Zeref is that determined to get you back to his side, and can invade your dreams..."

She shook her head and Natsu sighed, his hot breath gusting pleasurably against her neck, "Yeah." He agreed, and smiled at her, full of confidence and assurance, "We'll talk to everyone tomorrow." He promised.

Lucy smiled and nodded, her heart thumping warmly at the sight of that smile. It was like an adult version of his excited one, and it always turned her insides to mush when he displayed it.

That he was displaying it now, while they were together and reading like this just emphasized the effect.

They stared into each other's eyes for a long moment, renewed heat building between them, before they turned, almost as one, back to the story.

They read together about the guild's concerns, the worries and the search for Natsu. The fear they had for their family and the increased worry they had as tension stretched between Natsu and Lucy. But not only that, Fairy Tail was concerned for the consequences of having Zeref in their world.

Even if they didn't say it outloud, to worry Lucy or make her feel guilty about opening the gate, the worry was real. Zeref was in their world now. Waiting.

And it was only a matter of time before they would feel the true extent of his power.

Lucy shifted uncomfortably against Natsu, and his grip on her tightened.

"It's not your fault," Natsu growled to her, firmness in his voice that wouldn't be dissuaded.

"Zeref did this," he announced, staring at the book's final pages. There was a rough illustration of him reuniting with Lucy to go on a walk. Their newest chapter so fresh, the ink had barely dried.

He flashed Lucy a sunny smile and balled his right hand into a fist, "I'll beat him for sure this time. We won't sit through another celestial war. I promise."

Lucy smiled at him and set the book aside as she wrapped her arms tightly around him and pulled him on top of her, "I believe you."

Natsu felt his heart thump and melt at those simple, heartfelt, words and he leaned down to kiss her passionately, "I love you Luce." He purred, heat flaring in his eyes again as she pressed against him, "Always."

He descended on her again, eager to show her just how much. Their problems with his asshole brother could wait until morning.

-::-

The next morning, after spending far too long getting ready for the day, mostly because they couldn't keep their hands off each other, they headed back to the guild.

There was an immediate difference in the atmosphere of the place as they stepped inside and their guildmates caught sight of their beaming smiles and firmly entwined hands.

"Man, it's about time you two made up." Gray drawled, though the grin on his face belied his tone, "We were starting to wonder if we'd need to lock you guys in a closet or something."

"Pfffffft!" Natsu snorted, "Like I couldn't have burned the door down snowcone!"

"You're assuming the door would be made out of wood."

"And you're assuming you've got clothes on!"

"That doesn't even make any sense!"

Lucy shook her head a little, a fond smile curling over her lips as 'normal' reasserted itself. She stepped up to Makarov, who had been watching the whole scene calmly, "I'm sorry about all the trouble that's happened lately Master."

He shook his head, "Don't be child." He replied, "Zeref has deceived far older and more experienced wizards than yourself. You're not to blame." He smiled, "I'm just glad you're feeling better."

Lucy nodded, "Yes, but Natsu and I discovered something really worrying last night while we were reading the book."

Makarov looked faintly surprised, but his eyes narrowed with rapt attention. Natsu drew away from his impromptu fight with Gray so he could supplement information if it was needed.

"It was something the book revealed?" Makarov asked, encouraging Lucy to nod.

"Yes, it said something about how Zeref was capable of invading Natsu's dreams," Lucy said, concern decorating her face. The dragonslayer next to her flopped down on a nearby table and reclined far enough so his back and shoulders were pressing into the wood.

"Is that true?" Makarov's eyes snapped towards Natsu.

His coral head bobbed and he huffed out a breath to push his bangs from his eyes, "I am a demon. It only makes sense that Zeref would have a way of communicating with his minions on both sides of the gate. And his demons have always had a- "

He made a face of disgust

"-connection with him," he finished.

"We'll have to see what Cobra and the others of the Oracian Seis have to say on the matter," Jellal spoke up, looking worried over the very idea of Zeref being able to whisper in Natsu's head. It was a sensation he was all too familiar with.

"If it is true, how do we sever the connection he has with Zeref," Erza asked, marching up to Natsu and tilting the dragonslayer's head from side to side.

"Hey, I ain't a magic eight ball. If you shake me I'm not gonna spout new answers," Natsu grumbled, ignoring Erza's confused expression on what a magic eight ball was. Not that Natsu really knew either, but he had heard Lucy talk about it once before.

The detail rewarded him with a small giggle from Lucy, and he couldn't help but grin.

"Maybe there's something in one of the histories on demons that will give us a clue." Levy spoke up, "There've been a lot of conflicts over the centuries. Maybe someone had an idea we can expand on somehow?"

Lucy pursed her lips slightly, but nodded, "I can try asking Grandpa Cross too. The celestials had a lot of contact with demons during the war. Maybe their magic would have an effect without hurting Natsu."

Levy nodded eagerly, but Gajeel's heavy hand dropped onto her shoulder before she could run towards the library, "Somethin' like this is gonna need help." He rumbled at her, "We're gonna take a trip back to my hoard. See if there's anythin' there."

"You... hoard books?" Sting asked in astonishment, and Gajeel flashed a glare at him, "You got a problem with that?!"

"Ah, no!" Sting laughed nervously, holding up his hands, "No problem!" He glanced at Rogue, "I guess we should do the same."

Rogue nodded gravely, "Yes. Loaning books to help our drake is the least we can do."

Natsu raised an eyebrow at the twin dragons, his elbows propping up to brace himself, "I thought you guys were nomadic. Where would you keep a hoard?"

"Just because we traveled around, doesn't mean we didn't collect treasure," Rogue intoned, voice flat, "we _are_ dragons."

Natsu's heels dropped down onto the floor, his eyes squinting at them, "That doesn't answer the where though."

"Neutral territory. It's a bit risky since anyone can go there, but we hid our hoard well. It's a few days trek from here, but Rogue and I can go while Yukino helps Lucy with her summons," Sting's expression was grim, "I have a feeling we're all going to need a bit of extra practice."

Natsu nodded and he huffed out a breath, his eyes closing. A headache pulsed at his temple, causing his head to ache with a strange pressure as he rolled it back.

When he straightened and opened his eyes again, the pressure was gone, as was the headache. He was beginning to really get worked up about this whole Zeref thing.

Levy was eagerly getting ready to head to Gajeel's hoard with him, but the iron dragon's attention was fastened on Natsu.

Ruby eyes were narrowed and he cocked his head.

"You alright there Salamander?" He growled, "Not gonna go crazy the moment we're out of your territory and not let us back in, are ya?"

Natsu pouted at the iron dragon, rolling his eyes, "That was _**one**_ time fifty years ago! You're gonna have to let it go."

He stretched out, ignoring the intensity behind Gajeel's stare, which attracted the concerned looks of everyone around him.

"I'm fine!" he growled, fidgeting with impatience. Although it did fill him up with confusing warmth to see how people were actually concerned about him.

"I was just thinkin' - Lucy and I can take Happy and summon Leo to look up stuff in my hoard. I've got some pretty fancy books there too, especially some that Leo gave my dad. They can probably help," Natsu plowed on.

Lucy smiled brightly at him, both astounded that the dragons were willing to share their hoards, however temporarily, to help with this, and thrilled that Natsu was as willing to do the same as the others.

She curled her hand in his, "That's a great idea Natsu." She met his eyes fiercely, "I'm positive that between us we can find a way to break your connection to Zeref."

Gajeel nodded a bit, but something in him remained wary. Magical connections were dangerous, and with Zeref back on Earthland it was possible that it would be much more potent than Natsu was used to. That was something they didn't need. Things were already difficult enough.

However, he relented for the moment. That worry was the very reason why they were opening their hoards in the first place.

He just hoped it was in time.

Levy came running back in with a broad grin and a heavy pack over her shoulder, "Why'd you pack all that stuff shrimp?" He smirked, "Ain't like I don't have everythin' there already."

His smirk broadened as her cheeks puffed out and flushed, "Well maybe I wanted to pack stuff you don't have!" She huffed, smacking him on the arm, "You ever think of that?"

"Gihi! Ain't likely." He rumbled and scooped her up as he strode outside to transform, ignoring her outraged shouts of his name.

She was just so friggin' _cute_ when she was mad.

* * *

 _ **Thank you everyone who reviewed so much! We want to thank you all for your reviews! We also received a few comments and questions that need to be addressed.**_

 _ **Many people were upset at Natsu for what he did - which is both fair and unfair. Natsu and Lucy hurt one another in equal measures. It's the nature of their relationship. They are partners, and both were equally responsible for the events of their fight. Not one person was 'right.'**_

 _ **I've stopped doing the review responses because it will take me hours to complete sometimes. After sinking hours in writing, re-reading, editing, and planning out the chapter titles - the time spent on a single update alone eats up a huge portion of time. Making individualized responses, as much as I would LOVE to takes a lot. I hope you guys understand why I can't do that :C**_

* * *

 **Alright! That's it! You guys definitely earned your sneak! So here you go! Since you guys were so awesome... I'll give you a good one. Fufufu..**.

 _He smiled and kissed her, not caring about Happy's disgusted protests or even that the pervy lion was watching._

 _Unfortunately, the moment ended nearly the same moment it began as a sharp pain lanced through his head and he nearly doubled over with a hiss._

 _"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed in alarm holding him steady, "Are you alright?"_

 _Natsu twisted to look at her, and tried to open his mouth to reply when his world tilted even more and his vision went black._

 _The throbbing in his head was piercing, almost like a hundred voices at once shrieked in agony. Everything tunneled down into a single point. Fingers bunched into coral hair, he stumbled backwards and straight off the ledge._


	53. Treasure Island

_**Act 4**_

 _ **9**_

* * *

 _ **53**_

 _ **Treasure Island**_

 _"Sometimes the isle was thick with savages, with whom we fought, but in all my fancies nothing occurred to me so strange as our actual adventures."_

 _―_ Robert Louis Stevenson, _ **Treasure Island**_

* * *

"We'll look through the archives here," Gray wandered up as Gajeel and Levy disappeared from sight. He huffed a little his expression sour, but Lucy could tell he was actually worried about Natsu too. Even if he would hide it.

"There may not be a lot to find, since someone set the whole place on fire-"

Natsu grumbled under his breath.

"-but maybe something will come up."

Lucy gave their guild a happy look, turning to Natsu and elbowing him in the side, "A show of gratitude would be nice."

Natsu gave her a long stare, before much to her surprise, he bobbed his chin down to his chest.

"Thank you," his words were spoken soft, but for the sheer magnitude of Natsu actually thanking someone, he might as well have been shouting.

Gray and Erza exchanged worried looks, the red head pressing her hand against Natsu's forehead, "Is he okay?" She hissed, "Zeref hasn't taken hold of his mind has he?"

"Zeref can't mind control me!" Natsu snapped, cheeks flushed red. He swatted at her wrists, "he just talks in my dreams! It doesn't work like that!"

"Not that there is much to mind control to begin with anyway," Gray's voice came flat.

And just like that, every shred of gratitude Natsu showed up until that point evaporated. He lunged at the ice mage, nearly choking when Lucy yanked at his scarf like it was a leash.

"Down boy," she said, the very picture of patience.

"It's time to go to your hoard, remember?" She turned him bodily, small hands fitting between his broad shoulders.

"But Lucy!" Natsu whined indignantly, "You heard what he said!"

"I heard." Lucy replied quietly, her face pressing into his back as well, "And you can get into one of your usual fights later. But for now, let's please find a way to cut off Zeref. It's bad enough we have to fight him. I don't want him to manipulate us anymore."

Natsu stared tensely over his shoulder at her, but sighed at her words, and flashed her a grin, "Let's go then!"

He reached around, ignoring both her surprised squeak and Gray's muttering as he scooped her up and scales rippled over his body as horns sprouted from his head, and wings erupted from his back, "C'mon Happy!" He called, "Let's go flying!"

"Aye sir!" The little cat exclaimed excitedly and flew over to perch on Natsu's shoulder.

He hoped he would still be able to carry Natsu like Carla did Wendy when he was bigger, but at the same time he thought it was extremely cool Natsu had wings of his own.

He couldn't wait to find out what dragon flight was like.

Natsu flashed Lucy a pointier grin than usual and curled her protectively close before sprinting out of the guild and flapping into the air.

He would deal with Gray once Lucy was happy.

Thankfully, his hoard wasn't all that far away from the guild, so he wouldn't need to transform all the way for something minor like this. Still, Lucy was going to need practice balancing on his back while he was fully transformed. As it was, she definitely didn't have the grace for it.

"Natsu! I can walk!" Lucy protested him carrying her all over the place.

"Too slow with your stubby legs," Natsu teased, yelping when Lucy wrapped a hand around one of his horns and pulled, "Ow! Hey!"

"Who's stubby now?" Lucy smirked in victory as her hand on his horn made Natsu flap around in useless circles, "Wow, it's like I can steer you like this!"

"Lucy stop it!" Natsu wailed, whimpering until she let him go.

He gave her a mean pout, his eyes squinting at her dangerously, but Lucy only laughed bravely in the face of his mild irritation.

She had seen the height of Natsu's wrath before. And she doubted his pouting would ever scare her.

Still... that glint in his eyes promised revenge. And that did concern her.

A little.

Not really.

They arrived at Natsu's hoard a few moments later, Lucy finding herself back on solid ground while Happy landed on Natsu's shoulder.

"That was so much fun!" The cat said with excitement, "I mean it could have been better if you were flying with me but I guess your wings are pretty cool too"

Natsu grinned at the cat and he patted his head, "Oh yeah? Well maybe we'll just have to race sometime to see who has the cooler wings!"

Lucy headed into his hoard, favoring him a dry look over her shoulder.

"What are you, five?" She snorted at him and stepped through.

"Add a couple of zeros to the end of that and you ain't too far off," Natsu smirked, ducking in after her.

They picked their way through the dragon's hoard, this time both Happy and Natsu taking to the air, with Lucy being carried by the blue feline.

"My arms are going to rip off," Happy sobbed at the dragonslayer.

"I know buddy, be brave," Natsu said with a grim look, one that couldn't quite hide his smirk.

"I hate you both." Lucy growled at her two boys, but looking around as Natsu directed them to go higher into his caves. Moving up along a rock wall, they flapped up higher and higher.

Happy kept making noises of struggle as he fought to keep Lucy afloat, and eventually Natsu grabbed Lucy by the back of her shirt to help Happy steady her. But he didn't take her from the small cat completely, knowing their little exceed needed to build his strength.

"Natsu why are we going up so high?" Happy whined.

"Just a little bit further buddy. My library is up higher. I mean I don't really read a lot, so I just carved out some bookshelves and stuck 'em where they wouldn't get in the way," Natsu explained, dragging them both towards a narrow ledge.

He touched down, booted heels dropping down on firm rock. Natsu's hands shot out to steady Lucy, not wanting her to accidentally take a tumble when they were so far up.

"Maybe you should invest in some stairs?" Lucy groaned.

Natsu's expression was mystified as he pulled her from the edge, "Why? I've got wings."

He jolted a bit as Lucy's hands wrapped around his arm, her body shuffling towards his, "I know that Natsu!" She huffed, "But I don't!"

Surprised at the statement, Natsu couldn't help a silly smile overtake his face at her declaration.

Just the quiet reminders he wasn't alone anymore filled him with warmth. And building something as trivial as a staircase suddenly seemed much more important if it meant she would stay with him.

Lucy cocked her head slightly at the goofy smile on Natsu's face, mildly confused about what had put it there. Surely not just because she'd complained about a lack of stairs?

However, apparently he liked whatever was going on in his head as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close with a soft growl that reminded her of...purring! Her eyes went wide as she realized he was actually _purring_ at her! She'd never heard him do that before.

It was... really incredibly sweet.

Even if she still didn't know what had brought it on.

"Natsu?" She asked, trying to understand, but he just grinned as he pulled back and kissed her softly.

"Nothing Lucy."

She shook her head a little, a bemused smile curling over her own lips after that, "Well, let me summon Leo then."

He nodded and pulled back enough to give her room as she slashed her key through the air, "Open! Gate of the Lion! Leo!"

"You called Miss Lu-ack!" Leo yelped as he appeared a little too close to the edge of the ledge, and his arms pinwheeled comically before Natsu reached out and grabbed him by the shirt to pull him back up.

"Losin' your touch there?" He smirked in amusement, "You're usually a lot better about picking where you come out."

"Well if _someone_ would bother to widen the ledge it wouldn't be an issue." Leo huffed, and then blinked as he realized just where he was and in what company, "You brought Lucy to your hoard?"

He'd done his best to keep an eye on things since Zeref's return, something felt by the entire celestial realm, but as vigilant as he was he couldn't keep his eyes everywhere at once.

And the last time he'd checked on Lucy, only a day ago, she'd been nursing a badly broken heart. Obviously something had radically changed since then.

Something that had involved a lot of make up sex if their scents were any indication.

A surprising, but pleasing, change to be sure.

"Don't look so surprised, it ain't the first time she's been here," Natsu grumbled, turning around to walk off across the ledge towards a wider section of his aerial library.

The footing was still precarious, but it was a bit more steady than it had been before.

Trying not to feel a little offended by the slack-jawed expression on Leo's face, Natsu stuck his tongue out at him in a childish display.

"Alright boys, that's enough," Lucy said, dropping a hand on her hip, "This is serious."

That caught Leo's attention and he directed the rest of his focus solely on her. For him to be summoned outside of a battle and for advice, Leo could only imagine whatever knowledge they needed would be specific in nature.

"What can I do?" He asked.

Grateful Leo seemed to be on board, Lucy launched into her explanation over Natsu's predicament, and their hope that the Celestial Spirits might know a way of severing his connection with Zeref.

Leo listened to it all with an even countenance. He raked fingers through orange hair, golden rings disappearing through the silky locks.

"Separating a demon from Zeref?" Leo's gaze was long and steady, "That's never been done before. This connection is something we've never even had to deal with before. No one had known about it."

"Yeah, it's not exactly dinner-topic material," Natsu waved a dismissive hand, " 'How are you? - oh just fine! Only I hear the thoughts of my not-dead brother in my dreams sometimes!'"

"Yes, very smooth," Leo rolled his eyes.

"Do you have any suggestions? Celestial Magic seems somewhat compatible with Zeref's since he can open gates too," Happy mumbled, settling in Leo's mane of hair.

"Not many I'm afraid," Leo sighed, his eyes lingering over Natsu, "Although..."

He pointed at Natsu's neck. More specifically, the fabric wrapped around his throat.

"A talisman of great emotional value such as Natsu's scarf can serve as a conduit to celestial magic," Leo explained. His eyes met Natsu's, a wry grin flashing over his feline face, "I'm sure you've noticed by now, there is something unusual about your scarf."

"Aside from the fact it seems to serve as a weird mood ring?" Lucy side-eyed Natsu.

"Oy," he grumbled.

"Sorta," Leo crossed his arms, "The scarf is imbued with Igneel's will. When Natsu strays from his father's teachings, the scales blacken, making him more susceptible to his demonic nature and a loss of control over his magic."

"Huh?" Natsu stared, holding up the tail of the scarf in shock, "Why didn't you ever tell me!"

"Wasn't my secret to tell," Leo shrugged, but crossed over enough space to jab a finger into Natsu's chest, "But maybe if you had _listened_ to me over the years, maybe it wouldn't have looked better!"

Natsu fell silent, looking at his treasured scarf as if for the first time.

"How do you know all this Leo?" Happy asked, his worried eyes glancing at Natsu's still form.

Leo also gave Natsu a concerned look but turned to the blue exceed. One hand rested on Happy's head.

"Because the Celestial Spirit King made the scarf for Igneel," Leo explained, "As a gift of friendship, the scarf was imbued with magic through Igneel's scales to serve as a protective talisman - he chose to give it to Natsu."

"The scarf can never fully recover to what it was, it's been damaged too far for it to ever be whole again... It reflects not only Igneel, but Natsu now," Leo saw the dragonslayer's shoulders stiffen, tan fingers curling into the worn, white fabric between his hands.

"Well that's good," Lucy's voice broke in, pulling Natsu's attention up, "I rather like the scarf how it is now."

She closed in next to Natsu, pulling the tail of his scarf from his hands. Toying with it between her fingers, she slid her fingers through the soft scales, "It's nice. Weathered and beaten, but like a warm pillow you can sink into."

"Lucy..." Natsu stared at her, a hard lump forming in his throat. He'd caused so much damage to his scarf. The scarf that represented Igneel's teachings. His desire to protect him.

Lucy smiled at him and gently rubbed her fingers through the warmth of the scarf, but didn't take her eyes off his, "Things are at their best when they've been used." She murmured, "Lived in. Seen good times and bad and weathered through them."

"That's what makes them really special."

Natsu felt something in him burst with emotion and he wrapped his arms tightly around her, burying his face into the crook of her neck, "Thanks Lucy." He whispered, his voice trembling a little.

She accepted him. As she always had. Faults and all.

She didn't mind that his scarf was a little worn around the edges, and maybe a little gray in the creases. It just gave it character as she would say. And that meant the absolute world to him.

He smiled and kissed her, not caring about Happy's disgusted protests or even that the pervy lion was watching.

Unfortunately, the moment ended nearly the same moment it began as a sharp pain lanced through his head and he nearly doubled over with a hiss.

"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed in alarm holding him steady, "Are you alright?"

Natsu twisted to look at her, and tried to open his mouth to reply when his world tilted even more and his vision went black.

The throbbing in his head was piercing, almost like a hundred voices at once shrieked in agony. Everything tunneled down into a single point. Fingers bunched into coral hair, he stumbled backwards and straight off the ledge.

-::-

Miles away in the small port Hargeon, Lyon Vastia stood out by the docks. His frosty eyes remained out on the horizon, watching the gentle waves that rolled into town.

The water swirled around the dock, lapping against the wood in gentle patterns, foam forming and sliding away as quickly as it came.

The ocean was mostly still, even despite these occasional interruptions, and Lyon stared at it in deep concern. Because out near Galuna Island, he could see a thick canopy of dark clouds crackling towards them.

Lyon nearly jolted as the dock creaked behind him until he caught sight of Jura's large frame. The bald man approached him until they stood side by side, both watching the looming sky.

"It's a troubling omen," Jura said, his voice quiet at the sight of the approaching clouds.

Lyon turned, looking surprised at the older man, "Don't tell me you believe in the foolishness of good and bad luck sir?"

"I take it you do not believe in such things," Jura questioned.

"It's not in my nature," Lyon replied with honesty. Jura nodded, but his sharp eyes remained focused even despite the soft, paternal smile on his face.

"I suppose not, but I do," Jura's arms slid in his sleeves, "Perhaps it is old fashioned, but I find it troubling there is a cloud hanging over Galuna Island. Especially with what has happened recently."

Lyon nodded, unable to deny the other's point.

"You're referring to their sudden aggression?" Lyon frowned, the lack of understanding clear on his face, "I don't get it. We did nothing to antagonize them, and the demons on that island are usually so gentle."

"Yes, it does seem strange that a peaceful race of low-ranking demons would suddenly stop speaking with us," Jura sighed.

"It _is_ strange." Lyon agreed, and frowned thoughtfully, "I wonder if there's something affecting them?" He shrugged slightly at Jura's curious look, "There's always the possibility. The moondrip made them think they were cursed humans. If that affected them then perhaps something else has now."

Jura's expression darkened with concern, "I had not thought of that." He admitted, "If that is, indeed, the case then we'll need to find out what could do such a thing to them and reverse it."

Lyon's attention was pulled by the sound of the bells frantically ringing in the harbor, and his eyes widened in horror, "I think we're about to get our chance!"

On the horizon, flying in front of the rapidly approaching storm, almost as if they were part of it, were the Galuna Island demons themselves.

And they did not look the least bit friendly.

Jura inhaled in alarm, "Alert the guild!" He ordered, "Tell them to evacuate the people as quickly as possible."

"What about you?"

Jura fixed Lyon with a grim look, "Even as low level as they are, no ordinary human can withstand a demonic attack. So I will be buying you time to act. Now go!"

Lyon watched as Jura sprinted for the harbor, shouting warnings as he went, and took a step to follow him before hesitating. Jura was counting on him to alert the guild. As much as he wanted to disobey, knowing they could deal with the demons, he knew the two of them could not hold off the entire village without killing them and evacuate people at the same time.

And he was long since past the stage he was willing to coldly kill people who had been friends and allies until now.

So he turned and ran for the guild as fast as he could move, icing the street along the way so he could skate faster.

Lyon wasn't able to make it far though, because no sooner had he thrown open the door to Lamia Scale, the sky darkened.

The wings of the demons blotted out the sun as they swarmed down. Too many for even Jura to contain. Lyon threw up a hasty magic wall of living ice birds to dissuade them, but it wasn't enough.

The demons came from the sky in droves, and for whatever reason they were far more powerful than Lyon's previous encounters with them.

* * *

 _ **Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I'm running late on my updates again o.o Unfortunately no Sneak Peek this time! But thank you to everyone who DID review! :* I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**_

 _ **-::-**_

 ** _NEXT UPDATE: THURSDAY/FRIDAY_**


	54. Jurassic Park

_**Act 4**_

 _ **8**_

* * *

 _ **54**_

 _ **Jurassic Park**_

 _"All major changes are like death. You can't see to the other side until you are there."_

― Michael Crichton _ **, Jurassic Park**_

* * *

Natsu's eyes snapped open, a sudden rush of air rushing into his lungs as he realized _holy shit he was falling._

The ground loomed up into his face quickly, before small paws grabbed a hold of his shoulders and flew outwards. Natsu just managed to catch sight of white, fluffy wings leveling him out before they both toppled head first into a pile of tapestries stacked almost to the ceiling of his hoard.

Happy had jumped off the edge right after him. And Natsu barely had the sense to understand how he had fallen in the first place. There was a sharp pain in his skull, and then suddenly before he had realized it, he woke up taking a swandive off the top of his hoard.

Natsu groaned as he sat up, rubbing a hand against his bangs when they were precariously buried in the cushy fabrics, a hand digging back in the folds to fetch Happy.

"Thanks for the save buddy," Natsu grinned at him. The cat was getting better, that was for sure. Even if he was still unsteady with passengers, he had managed to keep everything level enough for them to find something soft to land on.

"Told you my wings were better," Happy said weakly, but wiggled in Natsu's grasp to set soft paws on his cheeks, "Are you okay?"

Taking one look at those big, watery eyes made Natsu's stomach flip.

"Yeah Happy, I'm okay, sorry for worrying you guys," Natsu pushed the tapestries off them and balanced onto his feet, "Let's go back up, alright?"

Happy nodded, but before Natsu could transform to fly even a little, Happy grabbed a hold of him and flew off, wobbling a little as his arms struggled to hold the dragonslayer up.

It looked like his flying privileges had been revoked for the moment. Not that Natsu could blame them. He frowned, falling into silence.

Just what happened to him?

"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed rushing over to the edge of the ledge with Leo to help pull him to safety the moment Happy flew into view, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Natsu replied holding out his arms so Happy could land in them, "Happy caught me! Didn't you little buddy?"

"And it's a good thing!" Lucy huffed, half scolding, "You scared me to death when you took that fall! If he hadn't gone after you..." She shook her head.

Natsu winced a little guiltily, "Sorry for scarin' you Lucy." He apologized.

"Natsu..." Leo spoke up, his expression one of deep worry and even deeper concern, "What happened? I've never seen you collapse like that before."

Natsu opened his mouth to make a smart comment, but the look on the lion's face made him pause. Leo rarely looked like that. He was really worried about him?

The thought warmed him a bit.

Even if it was just worry for what would happen to Lucy if something happened to him reflecting over, it was kind of nice to know the old cat cared.

So he snapped his mouth closed and shook his head a little, "I don't know." He admitted, "There was this sharp pain in my head and the next thing I knew, I was falling."

Leo's frown deepened, "Have you had any other moments like that recently?"

Natsu started to shake his head, but paused, "I'm not sure..." He looked at Lucy, "It started up when I got my transformations back! They've been different since that day. Easier and faster. But it kinda feels like when I was first learning to change too. A little sore after, and stuff."

"Still, that's strange. We should see if Gajeel or the other dragons have ever experienced any lingering pains after transforming," Leo frowned, "This could be related to your connection to Zeref after all."

Lucy rubbed a hand through Natsu's hair and gave him a tense look, "Okay. No more daredevil stunts for the day, okay?" She demanded, "And you are definitely adding stairs and a wider ledge to this place. No questions asked."

"Fine," Natsu huffed out a whine, but allowed Lucy to guide him a safe distance from the edge.

He was made to sit down, much to his ire while Lucy began to pick books out for them to read with Happy and Leo.

"Natsu, why do you have so many books if you don't read?" Happy asked.

"Because he's greedy," Leo grumbled with a roll of his eyes, a finger sliding over a thick leather spine.

Natsu barely even registered the insult, too busy watching Lucy on a ladder, trying to peek up her skirt. Until she dropped a heavy volume directly on his face.

"Whoops," She smirked down at him.

"Luuuuucy!" Natsu whined, pouting as he rubbed his now sore nose.

"Serves you right for trying to peep!" Lucy replied primly, not the least put out by his pout or concerned about damage. Natsu got worse from one of his daily fights and he came out of those without a scratch.

She glanced around a little, looking out at the massive hoard visible beyond the edge of the ledge, "I do have to wonder why you don't at least have this stuff organized though." She commented, "I mean, even if you never showed it to anyone wouldn't you enjoy it more if you could actually see all your art and things?"

Natsu blinked, startled by the thought, "I dunno." He replied, "I never thought about it." He smirked toothily at her, "I just wanted most of it because it was shiny or worth something."

Lucy rolled her eyes, "Dragons are officially worse than ravens." She picked out another book and climbed down the ladder, "You should think about it though. With some work this place could be like the inside of a castle."

The thought made Natsu freeze and stars appeared in his eyes, "Oh do you really think so?!" He exclaimed, "That would be so cool!"

"Aye!" Happy exclaimed, excited despite not knowing what a castle was, and Lucy laughed, "It's a thought for another day boys. We have other stuff to do now."

"Yes ma'am," Natsu drawled, leaning back against a shelf and cracking open the book she tossed at his head.

"So why do you have all these books?" Lucy asked.

"Because I have refined taste," came Natsu's simple reply.

"Really? Because this one is in a totally different language from anything I've ever seen, and I think this one is a cookbook that focused only on how to boil beans properly," Lucy quirked an eyebrow at him, "Very refined."

Natsu didn't even look up, "Beans are an excellent source of protein. I stand by my statement."

Lucy rolled her eyes as she gathered something to read as well, climbing down to join Natsu.

And together they read in comfortable silence, Happy nestling next to them on Natsu's lap, while Leo eventually returned back to the celestial realm to look for more answers there.

-::-

Meanwhile, Gray stared at the lacrima on the desk in Fairy Tail for the hundredth time, uncertainty spilling in his stomach every time he stole a glance.

For a second, Lyon's face had appeared in the crystal, but whatever his brother had attempted to say to him had been cut off.

Was it an accident? Or had it been on purpose.

Things had always been a little tense between him and Lyon. Although their relationship had improved immensely over the years.

So he was a little worried when he thought he caught sight of Lyon's face. Had it just been the light which made his skin look bruised and scratched up? Or was is genuine?

Every attempt he made to connect with Lamia Scale since then had failed.

"You still can't get through to Lyon and Lamia Scale darling?" Juvia asked in concern as she joined him, pulling him out of his broody thoughts.

"No, I can't. And that's got me worried." He growled, "Lyon can be an ass, but even if he was screwing around I should still be able to get through to their guild. Especially after so long."

And it had been hours. He'd brushed it off at first, mostly just trying to call back to chew Lyon out for being a brat, but as the silence had extended he'd gotten more and more worried.

Something in him had started nudging at him that there might be something seriously wrong, and the voice had gotten louder the more time had passed. Whatever could've happened had to be serious if it had shut up the entire guild.

He twitched a bit at the realization that if the entire guild had gone into a communications blackout then it was way beyond serious and into complete disaster. Possibly on the scale of Deliora considering who he was talking about here.

"I'm heading to Harjeon." He said abruptly and started striding towards the door. Whatever had happened he had to get there and find out what it was. Hopefully it was nothing and he was overreacting. Though if that was the case he was going to beat his annoying brother into the middle of next week for worrying him like this.

However, before he could make it to the door a small figure appeared in it, and he sucked in a breath as he recognized the battered form of Chelia.

"Please... help us." The young sky godslayer cried, clearly beyond her limit if her hurts were showing and not healing, "They... they attacked and overwhelmed us."

She slid down the door frame as Wendy rushed to her side, tears spilling over, "I don't know what happened to the others! Lyon helped me get out..."

Juvia rushed over to cradle Chelia's head, her arms wrapping firmly around her limp body as Wendy used her magic to apply emergency first aid. It was truly disconcerting that her injuries hadn't healed over. Her magic was just as impressive as Wendy's was.

"Easy, it's okay, you're safe now," Juvia hushed as she held her firmly while Wendy worked.

Gray dropped down in front of the pink haired mage, his expression tight and worried, "Who attacked you? What's happening in Hargeon?"

The distressed girl bit her bottom lip, her eyes still filled with tears as she thought about what had happened, "The d-demons from Galuna Island..."

"I've never seen them so _angry_ before," Chelia whimpered, "It was like they had gone insane. They didn't recognize us as we tried to contain them. And they were so strong."

"It was like a rush of magic went straight to their heads, and they attacked us relentlessly, I only barely managed to make it out," her bottom lip trembled and she reached out to grasp Gray's shoulders, " _Please_! You have to help! Jura, Lyon and the others! They're all still fighting, but the demon horde isn't letting up!"

"They're fighting up, heading North," She whimpered.

Heading North.

Towards Magnolia.

Gray's hand tightened against Chelia's shoulder, his throat tight.

"You needn't worry Chelia." Erza said from behind Gray, and gave the upset girl a reassuring look, "We will help."

"No doubt this is Zeref's doing." Jellal growled softly, "With him back in this world it would be trivial for him to overwhelm his lesser demons and control them."

"But surely Natsu would know if that was possible." She protested, but Jellal shook his head, "Natsu isn't fully demonic." He reminded her, "It's possible full demons have a stronger connection to their creator than he does. And if that's the case..."

The thought was utterly chilling.

Erza nodded grimly, vividly remembering her last encounter with the Galuna tribe. They were a quiet people, but weak as demons went, and wouldn't have had any kind of defense against their creator if he'd used whatever strange link he had with them if Jellal was right. Which he tended to be about these things.

"Alright then. Natsu is still the demon king. If we're going to have any chance of stopping the Galuna demons we'll need his help."

"I'll call Lucy's lacrima." Mirajane volunteered and rushed over to their main one.

"Contact the other dragons as well if you can." Erza instructed, "If they've overwhelmed Lamia Scale we'll need their help. Hopefully, none of them are so far away they can't get there in time."

"Erza..." Gray growled warningly, and she dropped a re-assuring gauntlet on his shoulder, "We'll have them meet us there." She continued, "In the meantime we'll divide our forces and go to Lamia Scale's aid."

It didn't take long for her to organize their forces. Some would remain at the guild, just in case, and on alert to move out while the rest would head to Hargeon as fast as they could move.

With luck Natsu and Lucy would meet up with them quickly.

The guild as a whole walked out, Wendy being left with Chelia to try and help her recover some with the promise to join the guild members as soon as she was done.

The departure was fast and hurried, Makarov, Mirajane and some of the others remaining behind to protect the guild should something happen again. They would not be lured away a second time.

With news sent out to the dragons and everyone assembling, Gray made his way towards the guild's mounts. Juvia saddled up behind him, her arms making their way around his tense middle.

"Are you worried about Lyon?" Juvia murmured into the muscle of his shoulder.

Gray shrugged, his eyes narrow and a little distant. But he shook his head.

"Worried about that moron?" He asked, not looking at Juvia. But his hands grasped at her wrists, assuring himself of her presence.

"He wouldn't do mom's teachings wrong. Stubborn bastard is too hard headed to go down by a flock of demonic pigeons," Gray steered his mount towards the side.

Juvia smiled a little, but pressed her body against the curve of her back. She linked their hands together, feeling the coolness of his wedding ring press into her skin.

"Yes, he's just like his brother," Juvia said lightly, ignoring Gray's ill-tempered grunt.

They headed off together, Erza and Jellal flanking on the side.

-::-

Lucy was pulled from her deep immersion in a book about the theory behind different kinds of magical bonds by the sound of her phone going off.

She blinked for a moment as her thoughts shifted gears, and then dove for the chirping device. She'd always been secretly amused by how Earthland didn't have air conditioning, but had the magical equivalent of early smartphones.

"Hello?"

"Lucy, thank goodness!" Mirajane exclaimed in relief, "I need you and Natsu to drop what you're doing and head to Hargeon as fast as you can go!"

Lucy frowned in worry, glancing at Natsu and noticing a similar frown tugging at his lips, "Mira, what's happened?"

"Hargeon and Lamia Scale have been attacked by the demons from Galuna Island! Chelia made it out, but she reports they were completely overwhelmed, and the tribe is heading towards Magnolia!"

"What?!" Lucy exclaimed, half rising out of the little nest she and Natsu had made while they were reading, "But I thought the Galuna demons were peaceful?"

"They were. But something's happened to them. Please Lucy, hurry. Natsu is still the demon king. It's possible he can put an end to this before it gets even more out of control."

"We're on our way." Lucy replied firmly as Natsu got to his feet, and helped her up, a look of furious determination on his face.

She ended the call and looked at him, "Do you think you can stop it?"

Natsu didn't answer at first, instead insisting on carrying Lucy down from their tall perch. It was only when they were once again on solid ground did he glance at her.

"I dunno," Natsu shrugged, "The Galuna island demons are a bunch of wimps, I don't see how it's even possible for them to give a guild like Lamia Scale a hard time."

"But you're the king of demons right, you should be able to stop them," Lucy gave him a concerned look, "Without fighting too. In your condition, I don't see how you could keep them in line physically."

Natsu's squinted his eyes at her and pouted, "Excuse me. Rude much."

"I'm fine now. It was just a dizzy spell," And it was true. Natsu felt more than ok. In fact he was feeling a little energetic now. He hopped on the balls of his feet and rolled his shoulders.

" 'King' is only a fancy title really, I'm not the king of anyone. I'm not even sure who came up with that title or when, " He smirked.

"You just never thought to correct anyone?" Lucy gaped at him.

"Why would I? I'm the strongest demon. That sort of makes it true by default doesn't it?" Came his bland response.

Lucy rolled her eyes a little, but couldn't find a way to refute his point. If the culture was so obsessed with who was strongest then it made sense that even if he didn't rule anything Natsu would be considered king. Though she had to wonder what would happen if he actually did take a hand in ruling the demons.

It would shake things up that was for sure.

However, she could think about that later. Right now they had a crisis to manage.

"Are you going to transform fully?" She asked, and he grinned broadly at her.

"Of course! Gotta go in with a bang right? Even if those Galuna guys are wimps my dragon size will help squish 'em better than this form could."

He put action to words by trotting a little distance away, his form ripping as he did, and shifting upwards into the enormous red dragon she remembered so vividly.

She hadn't seen this form up close since his fight with Cobra. His rescue didn't count since she hadn't been able to see him at all until he got to her then.

It was every bit as breathtaking and awe inspiring as she remembered, but it was also completely different.

This Natsu didn't glare at her in hate as he had when she first got to this world. He didn't snarl or bare his fangs menacingly. He wasn't breathing fire from his mouth. And the Fairy Tail emblem had magically enlarged and took up his entire shoulder very visibly. She hadn't noticed that during the Cobra fight either. It looked good.

"You comin' or what Lucy?" He grinned at her, holding out a foreclaw invitingly, and very obviously enjoying her reaction.

Even at his worst he doubted he would have misinterpreted her look of awe and wonder for anything except what it was.

"Of course I am!" Lucy's cheeks flushed as she stared at him, embarrassed over being caught staring at him so obviously. She walked over to his extended claw, bracing her foot against it and hoisting herself up.

"How do I get on your back?" Lucy asked. Hot scales shifted under her, and she had to admit she liked the warmth significantly better than Gajeel's cold plates.

Natsu outright huffed at that, coils of smoke curling out from his nostrils and his massive head swung over to peer at Lucy with one golden eye, "We're going into a fight Lucy. You really think you can handle riding alone on my back?"

Lucy smirked at him and set a hand on his scaled cheek, shooting a glance over her shoulder at where Happy was.

"It's hardly the first time I've _ridden_ you," Her sly smirk only grew at the wide-eyed look Natsu was giving her.

Who knew dragons could make such expressions?

"Have it your way Luce," Natsu's maw split open to show a row of needle-sharp teeth.

Another huff of smoke spilled from him and he lightly nudged her bottom with his nose to help steady her as she made her way up his thick shoulder and grabbed onto one of his spines.

Once he was sure she and Happy were both secure he moved out of his lair and took off. He was careful not to jar his passengers more than absolutely necessary, but he also poured on the speed as much as he could without dislodging them. He hadn't liked what he'd heard from Mira, and wasn't about to let the damned snowcone get into a mess like this without him there.

The Galuna demons were wimps by even human wizard standards. There was no way they should've been able to overwhelm Lamia Scale like Mira had said.

The fact they had either meant Lamia Scale was much weaker than he'd always believed, or his bastard brother was involved somehow.

He wasn't sure off hand which scenario he wanted more.

Thankfully, he caught up to the rest of the guild quickly enough as they neared the outskirts of Hargeon. From a distance he could see plumes of smoke rising in various places around the port and mingling with the dark clouds hanging over it.

It looked like the Galuna demons had been having their fun.

He bared his fangs a little, growling softly in his displeasure over the invasion of his territory as he spotted the first line of demons approaching.

His eyes widened as he took in the dark aura pouring off them, the bared fangs, and the crazed look in their eyes.

That... could not be good.

"Get ready for a fight Luce!" He growled over his shoulder.

"Let's go Natsu!" Lucy called back, setting a hand on his hot scales to reassure him she would be fine where she was.

She pressed a hand against her keyring, "Open! Gate of the Ram! Aries!"

At the shimmer of Aries' gate opening, she took a deep breath and reached for another. Two. She could do this.

Summoning two spirits would be nothing.

She reached for another, slashing the golden key through the air, "Open Gate of the Scorpion! Scorpio!"

At the second gate shimmering around her, she found both Scorpio and Aries standing astride Natsu's back.

"Wicked job Miss Lucy!" Scorpio crowed and Aries nodded shyly.

"Thanks for coming you guys!" Lucy smiled in relief while Natsu straightened out under them, his body tensing as the flock of demons began to take to the air after the dragon.

"Help me keep these guys off Natsu's back!" Lucy shouted, uncoiling her whip, "Try not to hurt them too bad! They're not in their right minds!"

With a sharp toss of her wrist, her whip snapped out, coiling around one of the ankles of the demons. Natsu rolled to the side, and she used his momentum to drag the demon into his brethren.

"Of course Miss Lucy!" Aries stammered and held out her hands, causing a shield of wool to smother the demons in a ball of fluff.

Natsu laughed as they rolled and knocked the demons back. But there was definitely something wrong with everything happening.

The demons weren't just insane. They were powerful.

It was like a rush of magic had gone straight to their heads, and they were fighting with the single minded purpose of just simple destruction.

It was quickly clear just how Lamia Scale had been so thoroughly defeated. There was no way anyone could win without taking kill shots. Something that the guild as a whole was reluctant to do given their peaceful history with their now crazed allies.

Natsu's eyes narrowed dangerously. However, it wasn't something he was above doing. He felt a twinge of guilt that he was about to kill demons that had been clearly driven insane by something, but to protect Lucy and his nest he would do much worse than that.

Especially since, even with the others fighting all out on the ground, they were barely keeping them at bay.

And they were tiring.

"Damnit Erza!" Gray shouted as he slammed his fists together, "At this rate they're gonna tear us to pieces! They're just too strong!"

"There must be a way to save them!" Erza cried back, "They were our friends before Zeref returned! We have to help them!"

Gray's eyes narrowed as his demonslayer tattoo appeared, "We can't help them if they kill us first!" He growled.

His magic started building, the deadly ice magic he'd learned from his father to combat Natsu rising to the surface. Magic he was now preparing to turn on the Galuna tribe. However much he didn't want to personally, he was not going to let anyone else get hurt.

However, before he could so much as summon an ice cube's worth of demonslaying ice, the Galuna tribe began to falter.

They paused their attacks as demon after demon clutched their heads, screaming in agony, while the dark purple aura around them flared up and purple flames began bursting from their bodies.

One by one, each demon was reduced to ash. Flames burned through them in a searing heat that could be felt from one side of Fiore to the other.

Each one began to drop from the sky like a load of bricks. The ones on the ground already fell to their knees before the fire totally consumed them and their bodies began to disintegrate.

Natsu landed among the burning bodies of demons, his dark gaze narrowed and wings folded up to protect the precious cargo on his back. Lucy was tiring, but had managed to keep two spirits sustained. It was impressive she had lasted as long as she did.

But Natsu wasn't sure how long they could have stuck it out for without having had to start killing them.

To face such a possibility, not many in his guild would have taken that chance. And as he saw the burning bodies of his fellow demons, he couldn't help but feel a bit of grim relief.

His guild was safe. For now.

But it was equal parts confusing and worrisome. This stank of Zeref's work. But not even his intentional magic did this kind of thing.

"The demons burst into flames," Erza murmured and Natsu shook ash from his scales, "Natsu was that-"

"Wasn't me," He replied and bent down so Lucy could slide off safely. He transformed down a moment later, cracking his neck from the tenseness he felt in his body.

"I don't understand," Lucy looked around, the silence overtaking the battleground beginning to encroach as the last screams of the demons died down.

"What happened to them?" She asked, "It's like they burned up from inside."

Gray bent, scooping up a handful of the ash, his expression dark.

Natsu did the same, his eyes widening at the residual magic he felt dragging from the ash. Inside dust, he could feel a ping of magic drawing at him. Tugging in the back of his mind and whispering in his head.

"It was Zeref," Natsu said quietly, tilting his head to the side. Almost as if he were listening to something just out of range.

"They did burn apart from the inside, but that was just because they had too much power ripping them apart," Natsu stared, "And this magic came from Zeref."

"Why would Zeref tear apart his own demons after siccing them on a village," Gray asked shortly.

Natsu shook his head, trying to find the answer himself. But he wasn't able to sew the threads together.

"He wouldn't," Natsu trailed off.

Lucy frowned as she put a hand on Natsu's shoulder, "Natsu... you said you've got a bond with Zeref. They would've too right?" She paused, groping a little for the words, "Is it possible that... something he was doing affected them by accident or something?"

"What, you mean like spillover?" Gray asked with a frown, "How would that even work?"

Lucy shrugged a little helplessly, "I don't know, but if all demons have a connection to Zeref maybe it's on all the time, and the weaker ones are more susceptible to whatever he's doing?"

"If that's the case," Erza spoke up, "Then he must be working on something truly terrible."

Which was not a comforting thought at all.

"Whatever the case, it means breaking Natsu's bond with that freak is more important than ever." Gray growled darkly, "Even if he's too powerful to be affected like these guys were we don't want him connected when Zeref plays his hand."

The very thought had Natsu scowling darkly. He didn't like the idea of the bond directly affecting demons like this. He was pretty sure he was too powerful to be affected by something like what Lucy was proposing, but could he resist a deliberate act? That he wasn't so sure about.

Assuming Lucy was right.

He straightened up and gave Lucy a smile, "Let's not worry about it right now." He told her, "Even if you're right, which we don't know for sure, it's not an immediate threat to me."

He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, "C'mon. Let's get down there and find the ice prick's brother. We can worry about the rest of this stuff later."

His thoughts were still running wild, and he could tell Lucy wasn't entirely convinced.

There was just one thing wrong with Erza's theory that Zeref was intentionally up to something. And that was the past.

During the Celestial War, Zeref had never done anything like what they saw today. The Galuna island demons had existed back then, and Zeref had performed so many unspeakable actions with his magic back then, he wasn't convinced there was something he was doing.

But there was no mistake. This stank of Zeref.

Natsu didn't understand and it drove him insane not to know what was going on. Inside his own head, he was reasonably certain he was in full control of his mental faculties.

But the headaches he was getting. Right before they got word about the Galuna Island demons...

He glanced down at the ash, blowing away in the ocean breeze. His arm tightened around Lucy's shoulders.

Zeref was certain he would reach out to him.

Maybe it was time Natsu did. And let those dreams serve him for a change, instead of the other way around.

* * *

 _ **Alright lovelies, as you all know we are almost done with this fic! We've been working really hard to bring you this one, and our new fic as well! You all should know that we're planning a short oneshot for our winner of our 2000th's review. It's a Jerza oneshot that will take place after Parallels in the same universe!**_

 _ **As usual, thank you SO much to everyone who reviews! I know this whole fic is already written already so you don't have to motivate us to write, but it really does help up want to continue producing material for you all to enjoy!**_


	55. Where the Sidewalk Ends

_**Act 4**_

 _ **7**_

* * *

 _ **55**_

 _ **Where the Sidewalk Ends**_

 _"And all the colors I am inside have not been invented yet."_  
― Shel Silverstein _ **, Where the Sidewalk Ends: The Poems and Drawings of Shel Silverstein**_

* * *

Natsu kept his peace on his tentative plan to find out what was going on as they scoured Hargeon and located survivors. For a mercy, most people had fled to shelters that the Galuna demons had not found, so while there were a few dead the property damage was worse.

It was tragic that several among those dead were Lamia Scale members, but it was clear they'd died protecting the civilians, so at least their deaths weren't in vain.

Gray, had begun getting truly frantic when they'd stumbled across the first Lamia Scale body, but there was no sign of Lyon, Jura, or any of the other top members of the guild until they got closer to the port itself and found a fortress of sand logs.

"It's Jura!" Erza cried as they sprinted towards the construction, "Jura!" She called, pounding on a log that was as hard as stone, "Jura can you hear me! It's Erza from Fairy Tail!"

There was a moment of silence and then the sand logs quivered and slowly receded, revealing the bald man himself. Though he was looking considerably worse for the wear.

"Am I glad to see you." The large man rumbled as he stood up, swaying a bit, "Lyon and Chelia must've made it out. We need your help. There are wounded here."

"Wait... you said Lyon and Chelia?!" Gray cried, naked fear in his eyes, "Chelia was the only one who made it to the guild!"

Jura's expression turned grim at that, "That's not good news."

"Where did you last see them?" Erza asked and Jura nodded towards the north side of town, "They were heading in that direction. They'd fought their way back to me to help when it became clear the Galuna demons were much stronger than normal, but even the three of us combined could not stop them."

"I ordered a retreat to the shelters, and sent them to get help from you while I protected the wounded. That was the last I saw of them."

"Thank you Jura." Erza replied even as Gray hopped onto a riding cat and raced off, "We'll search for Lyon and notify Mira that it's safe for Chelia to return."

Despite being exhausted from their own fighting, Fairy Tail split up to try and find Lyon. Which meant Natsu had one of the mage's cloaks shoved into his face by Lucy.

"Oh _no_ ," Natsu whined and gingerly sniffed at it. His nose wrinkled, cringing bodily away from the fabric as if disgusted.

"The snow queen better appreciate this," Natsu growled and dropped to his hands and knees to get a better trail on the ground.

"Yeah yeah, quit whining Natsu. We have to find him! He could be seriously injured!" Lucy watched him sniff at the dirt, his sensitive nose going at top speed.

Despite his whining, Lucy knew he was taking it seriously.

"Alright, I got it. This way," Natsu growled and headed off on foot, "He couldn't have made it too far from town."

They just had to follow the stink of ice and stripper. That shouldn't be too hard for him to pick up with all the time he spent hanging out with Gray.

Lucy jogged alongside Natsu, her eyes locked on him and his fluttering white scarf, "I wish icicle breath hadn't run off ahead, we could've used his help."

"It can't be helped, we're heading in the same direction as him so we might find him," Lucy sighed, stopping as Natsu stopped in what had been a densely populated area. He seemed confused for a moment before he picked back up on the scent again.

"You're like a puppy, you really are," Lucy eyed him in amusement.

Natsu shot her a pouty glare that only seemed to amuse her more as he kept on the trail. It led them toward the outskirts of town and toward the cliffs where a path along the cliffs might've gotten Chelia out of town enough to get to Magnolia in the first place. Pretty clever actually.

"He's close." Natsu growled softly as he paused to re-orient himself again, "This way!"

He took off again only to crash headlong into Gray himself, "Hey! Watch where you're going popsicle!"

"You watch where you're going!" Gray growled back furiously, "I'm busy looking for my brother!"

"And what did you think we were doing?" Natsu huffed indignantly, "Takin' a pleasure stroll?"

Lucy stepped firmly between them, "That's enough! We're all looking for Lyon, and Natsu said he was close. So let's find him. You can bicker afterwards."

Natsu grumbled and huffed while Gray stood there in mild shock that Natsu was willingly tracking Lyon down for him.

"C'mon, it's this way still. I can practically taste the freezer burn."

Sure enough, it was only a couple of minutes later Natsu led them to a small cave just out of the way enough to be unnoticeable otherwise. One that was blocked by ice.

"Lyon!" Gray cried urgently and lunged forward only for Natsu to stop him, "Hold your horses for a second would ya?" He grumped, "At least long enough for me to melt this stuff."

He laid a hand on it and it began melting through with an ease that surprised Gray before he belatedly remembered that Lyon wasn't a demonslayer. His ice didn't have that element that made it hard for even Natsu to get rid of.

Which meant Lyon was stupidly lucky none of the Galuna demons had been fire demons.

Or it meant Lyon was in bad shape.

Suddenly anxious and finding Natsu moving too slow, he shifted from side to side until a path was cut through.

Only for Natsu to yelp and duck when an ice-make falcon zoomed straight at his head.

It was smaller than Gray was used to seeing from his brother, and the magical bird shattered upon impact with the stone wall behind Natsu.

"Hey! Watch it!" He growled, just enough for Gray to shove him to the side and climb over him.

"Lyon!" Gray swept his gaze around, "Get your lazy ass up! It's time to go!"

"Gray..." The weaker response came from his left.

Lyon's cloak was shredded, and the light blue fabric was dark purple near his side. There was a fine coat of ice decorating the injury, and his pallor almost matched the white of his hair.

"Late as usual, like we had all the time in the world," Lyon scoffed, but the tightness around his eyes seemed to relax at the sight of Gray, "Chelia... is she-?"

"She's fine," Gray cut him off, walking over to his brother and looping an arm around his middle, lifting Lyon's chest up gingerly, "But c'mon, we need to get you to a doctor. You look like shit."

"Funny, still better looking than you," Lyon replied haughtily, but it was still weaker than he intended.

Gray just snorted out a laugh as he helped his brother out into the open, "The demons are gone, we're taking you to Jura."

"Then Jura survived." Lyon breathed in badly concealed relief, "Good. I would've been very upset if one of the Wizard Saints had been taken out by a pack of rabid demons."

Gray snorted and helped Lyon over to his mount. He handed his brother over to Natsu while he mounted up, and nodded his thanks when the dragon helped hand Lyon up over his brother's protests.

"We'll meet you back there." Lucy told him with a smile, "We'll let Erza and the others know they can call off the search."

"Thanks Lucy." Gray replied and nudged his mount into a fast lope. Hopefully it would be smooth enough Lyon's ice would hold and the injury wouldn't aggravate itself. He knew from experience how problematic that could be.

Fortunately, the ride went well and it wasn't long before they'd ridden back into town. Chelia was already there with Wendy courtesy the Exceed and both girls were busily working on helping the wounded being brought in.

"Lyon!" Chelia exclaimed in horror, attracting Wendy's attention, and rushed over to their side, "Are you alright?"

"Heh, I'm fine." Lyon grunted as he slid down, though he was decidedly wobbly as he did, "As if a pack of demons could take me down. Please."

He tried to stick his nose in the air, but the action proved one too many as his eyes rolled back and he nearly fell on his face. Fortunately the girls were quick to catch him, and Chelia sighed in slight exasperation.

"C'mon. Let's set him down." She smiled at her new friend, "He's always like this."

With Lyon recovered and everyone safe, it didn't take long for the relief efforts to fall underway. There was also the matter of putting those who died to rest. The Galuna Island demons were just as much victims in this as Lamia Scale, and Natsu was enlisted to assist in the construction of a funeral pyre for the deceased.

It was a grim affair, and Fairy Tail stayed to help. Soon they were visited by a few other guilds, who also sought to offer assistance. Blue Pegasus and Mermaid Heel came, and in some way it almost became a competition to see who could offer the most assistance to Lamia Scale.

Lucy had to admit, if there was one way for their competitive spirit to kick in, she was glad that energy was focused on helping the people of Hargeon.

She stood by Natsu's side, who built the fire into a scorching heat. He had a strange expression on his face as he helped stack logs of wood and realized it must have been a strange to use his magic like this.

He backed away, wiping sweat from his forehead as he stared up at the grim construct.

It seemed like all of Hargeon came out to see the burning. The few fire-casting members of Lamia Scale, Blue Pegasus and Mermaid Heel all came forward with Natsu, who represented Fairy Tail, to assist with the burning.

As the fires spread up towards the sky, embers coating clothes and ash thick in the back of Natsu's mouth, he wondered why he ever wanted to kill these people.

Why had Zeref?

Natsu swallowed, his eyes flashing towards Lucy, even as his heart settled on his decision.

He had to find out.

Lucy came up beside him and slipped her hand into his, squeezing supportively. She didn't say anything during the burning. She just tried to be a support to Natsu the way he was with her while they listened to the tears around them.

Once it was over she gently guided him back to their shared room, the very same one they'd had her first night in this world, and tugged him over to the bed so they could snuggle.

"Natsu..." She murmured into the silence after a while, the grief having affected them as well, if only peripherally, "When this is all over, when Zeref is dealt with, do you think we could go away for a while? Just us?"

She felt him shift and looked up at him, a blush dusting her cheeks, "Just to relax for a while?"

"Not gonna worry about the rent if we're gone?" Natsu asked, his eyes lingering on her. His arm fell heavy and comforting across her waist, his head mashed in the pillow next to her.

"Oh don't you remind me before we do anything," Lucy chided, but couldn't help but sulk at the reminder.

Natsu huffed out a small laugh, still saddened by the amount of loss around them. His arm twisted around Lucy even more securely and he breathed in her scent.

"Move in with me," He murmured against her neck.

Lucy blinked, frowning in confusion and tugging on his shirt. She momentarily pulled herself from his warm embrace, flinching a little over how a shock of cold air from the oncoming wintery front chilled her.

"Uh, Natsu we already live together," She poked at his chest.

His hand, warm and rough caught hers, his thumb tracing nervous patterns against her guild mark.

"I don't mean in the apartment," Natsu said edging around the point. And was he... blushing?

"You mean your hoard?" Lucy asked, eyes widening in clarification.

Natsu nodded.

Lucy felt her jaw drop in surprise, and her heart thumped in her chest. He wanted her to live with him in his lair? The one place he was so very protective of?

That had to be like the equivalent of a proposal or something from a dragon. Especially him.

Her heart melted and she wrapped her arms tightly around him, "Yes!" She exclaimed happily and kissed his neck before pulling back enough to kiss his lips excitedly.

She grinned at him, "I would love to."

She squeaked a little when a broad, happy, smile practically exploded on his face and he pounced on her just as excitedly as she had him.

"Really?" He asked, and then blushed a bit, "I mean..."

Lucy giggled at him, "Yes really." She replied, "Though we'll have to clean it up some. Maybe we can turn it into that castle I was talking about."

After all, the lair was big enough for it. And she definitely wasn't going to live somewhere without a few more windows.

Granted, that assumed he would be willing to spend some of his gold on stuff like that, but judging by the look on his face she rather suspected he was willing to make the trade.

She cocked her head thoughtfully, "You know... that lair of yours is more than big enough for more than just us. Maybe, once we get everything cleaned up, we can turn it into the official nest?"

She knew, after all her talks with the various dragonslayers, that a nest typically lived all together in one big lair and each had their own section to hold themselves, their personal family, and their hoard.

If Natsu was going to clean up and convert the little mountain he lived in anyway... why not go all out?

Natsu hummed, surprising himself when he found he didn't particularly mind. Although really, why would he? It was the same concept as living in an apartment building with Lucy. Only this one would have more room.

That, and having a community, close like that again...

It was something he wanted.

Natsu hummed, "Why don't we work on making it livable for just you first." He grunted, but was still blindingly happy Lucy had agreed.

He hadn't thought she would, and now that she had...

It made him all the more determined to rip his stupid brother's head off to make sure he'd never do anything to hurt his family again.

The thought of Zeref sobered him again, and Natsu's fingers pressed into Lucy's hip. For a moment, he wanted to just forget.

But he knew he couldn't. Not with what had just happened outside their window. Natsu could still smell the ash. He wanted to take another shower.

But more importantly. He had to ask Lucy about his plan. Because nothing he'd do, he would venture without first informing her. He had learned his lesson the hard way.

"Lucy," He tucked her cold body back against his, warming her up with a few quick strokes of his hand against her arm, "Get some rest. We're heading back to Magnolia tomorrow, and we've got a lot of planning left to do."

His plan could wait. On the eve of so much pain from Hargeon, she did not need to go to sleep worrying about him.

* * *

 _ **I can't believe we're almost done guys!**_

 _ **:'D I can't wait to see this fic through! We are curious if you all are still reading though, because we've noticed a sharp drop in reviews! Your comments and questions really do make our day and encourage us to keep writing! We may not be able to reply to them all, but they are writer-nutrition and do motivate us when we're working!**_

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	56. A Beautiful Mind

_**Act 4**_

 _ **6 left**_

* * *

 _ **56**_

 _ **A Beautiful Mind**_

 _"It was like a tornado, you want to hold on to everything you have, you don't want to let anything go."_

― Sylvia Nasar _ **, A Beautiful Mind**_

-::-

* * *

The next day saw them heading back to Magnolia with Lamia Scale's thanks in their ears.

The sorrow of the previous day had not faded, not yet, but it was less than what it had been and Lucy thought maybe healing was already setting in. It wouldn't be easy of course, but such things never were. Though there were a few good things to come out of this tragedy.

She smiled fondly from her perch on Natsu's warm back at the memory of Chelia and Wendy saying goodbye. The two healers had become fast friends, and she'd overheard more than one in depth talk about their respective types of sky magic.

Privately, Lucy had been astonished to learn that godslayers existed at all, and she had to wonder if Chelia would someday grow into a goddess the same way Wendy was growing into a dragon.

It was an interesting thought to say the least.

"You fallin' asleep up there Luce?" Natsu rumbled, and Lucy blinked out of her reverie.

"No. Just thinking about Wendy and Chelia."

Natsu chuckled a bit, personally quite pleased that Wendy had made a friend her own age. Chelia was a nice enough hatchling, and it was good for Wendy to have someone else to talk to about her powers.

Once Magnolia was in view he angled himself towards his lair and landed gently outside before transforming down, "I thought we could stay here tonight!" He grinned broadly at her.

Lucy felt her heart thump at the idea and smiled as she pressed close to him, "I wouldn't have a problem with that." She purred.

Natsu grunted and rolled his head on his shoulders, stretching out his neck as his scales slithered away, melting away back into his skin.

He flashed her an easy smile and threw his arm around her shoulders as they headed into his - their lair. His smile grew lighthearted and goofy at the thought of them sharing it.

And he didn't mind sharing it with Lucy. Despite his natural possessiveness and greed, he couldn't be that way around her.

Maybe it was because he considered her part of his treasure, but he wasn't going to quibble over the details.

Especially not with what he had planned for later that evening.

He headed into the hoard with Lucy and began to help her clear out some space for them. They weren't lacking for room, but it was still a mess of gold and random knickknacks he liked.

They invested themselves in the project, working diligently to get it all moving and worked out.

Soon he and Lucy managed to shift enough stuff around to reveal one of his more luxurious beds. One he had swiped as a dragon and never slept on.

Mostly because he hadn't been able to see a point behind it.

But he had wanted it, and that had been more than enough reason for him to take it.

Whining, he flopped back on the bed, sinking into the thick blankets and feeling like he was dropping through a marshmallow.

"Should I leave you two alone for a while?" Lucy teased as she returned from freshening up. Natsu's lair would certainly need some modernizing before she made this move permanent.

There was no way she was living anywhere without a fully functioning bathroom for more than a day or two outside of camping. And that was final.

Natsu rolled over enough to look at her, and felt his gut ignite with a familiar fire at the sight of her dressed in what could, charitably, be called a sheer scrap of silk.

Where had she even found that?

Not that he was complaining.

He was developing an appreciation for some of Lucy's more exotic underwear choices, and it was apparent that his love was feeling frisky their first night together like this.

"Nah." He purred with a toothy grin, and reached out to snag her wrist and pull her into bed with him.

Plan or not he was not going to ignore Lucy when she was like this.

He wrapped his arms around her and slid a hand up under her nightie, "My princess is feeling naughty is she?" He rumbled into her ear, enjoying the way she shivered when he did.

"Maybe." She smirked back, but shifted to pull him into a kiss.

However, despite his enthusiasm for their play, Natsu couldn't abandon himself to it as he usually did. His plan kept nagging at him. Mostly because he hadn't told her yet, and they'd promised no more secrets between them.

Lucy must've sensed something wrong because she pulled back with a frown, "What's wrong?"

Natsu allowed himself a moment to marvel at how well she had come to know him. She could feel the hesitation in his touch and sense the distraction in his mind. He was almost a little jealous over her insight.

Of course it was the same for him, and he could tell he was worrying her already.

He bumped his forehead against hers, his hand retreating back into safer territory, "Nothing _too_ bad."

Lucy's eyes sharpened with immediate suspicion, and Natsu had to hide a cringe.

Perhaps he should have opened it up in a different way.

"I have a plan," Natsu mumbled, looking away evasively, "I want to... talk to Zeref."

Lucy sat straight up at that, a scandalized look on her face and Natsu felt like sinking into the pillows over how horrified she looked.

"You want to do _what_?" She exclaimed, "Talk to Zeref? As in your brother? The very one that just caused an entire race of demons to turn to ash?"

Natsu looked around, wondering if this was a trick question, "Yes?"

He didn't flinch away as Lucy's hands came around to grab the sides of his head. Part of him was surprised. When had he stopped twisting away from her? He couldn't even remember.

Still, the way she was gripping his head now made him think she was about to give him a firm shake.

"You've been getting more headaches Natsu," Lucy said firmly and looked at him, "I know you haven't said anything because the timing hasn't been right, but something is starting to affect you too and I'm afraid it's _him_."

Natsu looked at her, setting his hand over her cooler one, enjoying the feel of her delicate fingers under his, "But Luce..."

"Please Natsu, if you open up yourself to Zeref, then who knows what could happen," Lucy murmured.

Natsu frowned, his jaw clenching stubbornly as he looked up at her, "But Zeref _already_ has full access into my head. It's not like I can do anything different."

"Yeah, but your connection to him is like a raw spot." Lucy argued worriedly, "What if you poke at it and whatever it is that he did to the Galuna demons happens to you because you can't filter it?"

Natsu didn't want to admit it, but she kind of had a point. Still...

"This may be our best way of finding out what's going on though." He cupped her face tenderly, "Maybe it's risky, but it may be riskier to not try."

He shook his head, "Zeref's not acting normal. I don't know why, but he'd never have pulled a stunt like this before." He growled softly, "Bastard's always been real careful. Plans inside of plans and stuff."

"And this could be a plan within those plans." Lucy replied, "Maybe he wanted you to think that and go to him in your dreams to open you up to something."

Natsu honestly doubted it. His brother's plans were never this wild and plain random. Zeref was more than happy to leave his creations to wreak havoc as they saw fit, but when he was at the helm there was very little he didn't plan for and less that surprised him.

However, he couldn't blame Lucy for thinking what she did.

She didn't really know Zeref outside of stories and her one encounter with him so far. He could understand why she thought the way she did.

That didn't make it right though.

He hesitated, a hand pressing into her shoulderblade as he looked into her worried eyes, "In the last war, Zeref's plans were precise."

"This one had no end goal, no purpose. It was random and loose. And the Galuna Island demons burned themselves out. If he had wanted to cause us real damage, he wouldn't have even used them. They went mad because of the power pushed on them and it ultimately destroyed them with minimal casualties," Natsu moved his hands up to her cheeks.

"I have to find out what he's up to. Because what if something happens here next?" Natsu's eyes dragged onto Lucy.

"I can't ignore it Lucy," Natsu apologized, sliding his hand away from her.

Her eyes were dark with worry, and her brow was furrowing, leaving a cute line between them as she bit her bottom lip.

She seemed to struggle with herself, hurt, anger and worry all warring on her face. Natsu hated to see her conflicted. Because in truth, he was too.

"Then you have to do it," Lucy said after a long moment. Her fingers tugged into his rosy hair, nails scratching along his scalp.

"But if you fall into the rabbit hole, you better believe I'm going to drag you back through the looking glass," Lucy growled.

Natsu shook his head, an oblivious smile, small and happy tugging at his lips, "I have no idea what that means."

Lucy sighed and kissed him, sliding back down beside Natsu.

"I'll have to add a few books to your collection here. I'm sure you'll like that one in particular," Lucy smiled, thinking back to the strange similarities her story had to Alice's.

"I'd like that," Natsu grinned back.

Lucy giggled a little and leaned over to nip gently at his ear, "There's a lot of books from my world I'm sure you'd like." She purred and crawled on top of him.

"Love me Natsu." She murmured, somehow both hungry and serious looking at the same time, "Please? If you're going to face him tonight then I want you doing so with just how much I love you fresh on your mind."

Natsu smiled lovingly up at her, and pulled her into a lingering kiss, one hand tangling in her hair while the other slid back under her nightie, "Gladly Luce." He growled huskily.

He knew there was no more room for Zeref to manipulate him against Lucy, but he liked the idea of facing his brother still hot from the afterglow of making love to her.

He growled softly and rolled her onto her back as he descended on her, firmly putting Zeref out of his mind for the moment. Lucy was all that mattered, and he was more than eager to make her forget her worry as well.

-::-

Much later, as they both curled around each other happy and exhausted, Natsu managed to pull himself from the pleasant buzzing in his body enough to remember he was trying to direct his dreams tonight.

He closed his eyes and felt around for the bond that connected him to his brother hoping that poking at it would produce the result he wanted. If it didn't... well... he would try to figure that out when it happened.

There was no 'bond' to magically feel. Or, if there was, Natsu didn't know how to access it. He sighed, blowing a puff of air up and moving his bangs out of his face. They had flopped down during his activities with Lucy and were obscuring his vision.

He growled in frustration and curled his body to the right, tugging Lucy towards him. Whatever bond he had with Zeref, it wasn't something he could pick up on.

Maybe it was because Natsu spent his entire existence pushing out against even being near Zeref.

Oh the irony.

Lucy was resting quietly against his shoulder, and he rolled on his side to tuck her head under his chin.

Maybe one of the other guild members would have an idea on what to do he thought sleepily.

His eyes closed and breathing deepened as slowly his thoughts drifted off and he fell asleep.

When he next opened his eyes, he found himself standing in Mavis' library again. But this time, the walls were on fire.

Natsu whipped around, his eyes wide as he looked at the state of the library and trying to figure out where he was.

Had it worked?

Was this the bond?

No...

Natsu looked around the flaming shelves without fear of the heat.

The last time he was there, the books and shelves were orderly and neat. Not a page out of place. But now...

Natsu spotted Zeref sitting in a chair, his back towards him, and seemingly oblivious to the flames.

Could it be that this was a peek into Zeref's mind?

Natsu never had much care for Mavis' library...

But his brother had been in love with her.

"Zeref..?" He called out, wary despite his immunity to fire.

"Do you ever wonder what life would have been like if we'd taken different directions Natsu?" Zeref replied without turning around, "The paths untrod, and the joys and sorrows unseen and unfelt?"

Natsu blinked at that, uncertain how to respond. His brother had an annoying habit of either speaking in nothing but riddles or plainly saying what was on his mind, but philosophy wasn't talked about much unless they were shouting it across a battlefield or Zeref was being particularly cryptic.

This... didn't quite sound like that though.

They seemed to be honest questions. The kind he would expect to hear from Jellal or Lucy when they discussed philosophy.

And for some reason hearing them from Zeref unnerved him.

Zeref stood up and turned to look at him, and his breath caught. His eyes were red. It was the look he tended to reserve for when he was his most angry, but there was a weird glint in them he didn't remember from before.

It kind of reminded him of that stupid fire godslayer wannabe...

However, the thought stopped in its tracks as Zeref paced slowly towards him, "I've wondered such for quite a long time." He murmured, "What would have happened if you hadn't turned on me? If we had been able to be a family? If I hadn't fallen through that gate?"

He glanced at the various fires, unperturbed by the burning around them, "Tendrils of my power." He commented, reaching out to have one curl around his hand like a pet snake, "It devours and consumes and rages through me."

A smile that honestly creeped Natsu out curled his lips, "It is intoxicating." He breathed out as if in reverence, "So long without my power and now it overflows within me!"

Natsu held his ground, watching the flames lick against Zeref's skin, a path of scorching blisters bubbling on his wrist. Natsu's eyes widened, but Zeref didn't seem to care.

Of course the angry welts disappeared moments later, but the simple sign of their appearance at first unnerved him.

Zeref had always played fast and loose with insanity before, but it seemed his brother's tenuous hold on his sanity had finally slipped. Whether it was because of his newly returned magic, rushing through his senses, or even the centuries spent isolated as the only one, seemingly immortal in a world without magic - he didn't know.

"If you hadn't tried to take me from Igneel, none of this would have ever happened," Natsu snapped at him, unfazed by the frightening sharpness in his brother's eyes, "You gave me to him to help me control my magic. To raise me."

He frowned, "So thank you for that at least. Because you did that, I had a father."

"But you're not my family. I didn't betray you. You're the one who attacked, you're the one who hurt Igneel, and you deserved to fall into the pits of hell itself instead of just falling into another world," Natsu growled, "Fairy Tail is my family. My nest is my family. Lucy is my family."

"There's no room for you in it!" Natsu snarled harshly, distantly aware he was supposed to be finding out what his brother's plans were, but he was just so damn angry.

A flicker of darkness seemed to glow in Zeref's eyes, his brows crinkling in sadness.

"You did not come for me?" Zeref asked.

Natsu snorted and dropped his hands on his waist, "Why the hell would you think I'd ever come to you? I want to know what happened to the Galuna Island demons. What did you do to them?"

But Zeref didn't seem to hear him. Instead he turned away, pacing back towards a bookshelf and shaking his head, "No. No I was convinced. You would come to me and we would be a family again."

Frustrated, Natsu growled at Zeref's back.

"Hey jackass, didn't you hear me? I said we ain't a family! It didn't happen in the past, and it ain't gonna happen now!" He snarled, advancing towards the pacing Zeref.

He grabbed Zeref's shoulder and whipped him around, "Now what did you do to the Galuna tribe? Why did you attack Hargeon?"

Zeref frowned at his belligerent brother, his mind still churning over the angry words being spoken. Why was Natsu not here for him? Didn't he see they were family? That he only wanted them to be together as they'd always been and should've always been.

Igneel had been... a necessity. He'd been incapable of teaching his precious little brother how to control the flames he'd gifted him with in his rebirth. Once that had been accomplished he'd no longer been of any use.

Why did Natsu not see that?

It made no sense.

Igneel was not family any more than the girl Lucy was.

Both were pleasurable in their own way he supposed. Particularly Lucy. However, that had nothing on their brother bond.

He scowled a little. It seemed he would have to force his brother to see again. As Lucy no longer held any secrets against Natsu with which to drive them apart he would simply have to take her from him.

He looked into his brother's eyes, decisions made, ignoring the way the fires around them intensified.

"I did not attack Hargeon." He replied evenly, calmly, "I have no use for it, nor any need to destroy it. I could care less about it or Galuna."

Yes. He would take Lucy and force his brother to see the truth.

Perhaps if Natsu behaved himself he would even give her back from time to time.

Natsu's fingers flexed in irritation, but even he could began to feel the heat rolling off the walls. A bead of sweat slid down the back of his neck and he growled.

"You're telling me that the demons in Hargeon went insane for no reason? They were saturated with your magic!" Natsu shouted back at the red-eyed wizard.

And then what he said registered.

Natsu's mouth dropped open and his eyes went wide, horror descending on him as he took in his surroundings again with fresh eyes.

"They didn't go insane because you wanted them to," Natsu murmured, "They went insane because _you did_."

Zeref's magic was burning this room, his mind, apart. Fire was everywhere, encroaching in around them and licking at the support beams.

"Perhaps," Zeref allowed, not seeming interested.

But Natsu was, and the implications of what was happening was terrifying. The weakest of Zeref's demons had been affected by their creator's own madness. The leaking of his power dripping into their minds like an infection. A terminal disease that spread from one demon to the next.

Natsu was a strong demon, but that didn't change the fact that he was one. The weakest demons would be affected first as the disease slowly climbed each rung up.

Until they reached Natsu.

All he had was time.

Fire, scorching flames unlike what Natsu had felt before lapped at his heel and Natsu flinched as his skin burned. He hissed in sharp shock, wrenching his leg away. Zeref's magic was creeping up on him, and he felt a little sick over how right Lucy had been.

Because, while it was true he would have been last to be affected had this gone on as normal, Natsu had jumped straight into the proverbial - and literal, fire.

-::-

* * *

 _ **Wow! So many of you people dropped by to review! I really appreciate the sudden surge! I had a really awful day so seeing you all really brightened my spirits! A few of you mentioned some reasons why you don't review, so I will address them here real quick:**_

 _ **"Saying 'I love this fic' can get repetitive":** Our answer is - We are needy crybaby authors and need constant reassurance. It's definitely not repetitive to us. (Okay, Kytrin is pretty rational, but Mslead is a definite flailer.)_

 _ **"I didn't have time to review!":**...So... you guys want... more time between updates? This confuses me, because this is literally the only way we can give you **more** time? (considering the outcry we got when I suggested changing the update schedule earlier in the fic, I'm guessing you don't want this.)  
_

 _ **"We don't get a response!":** ...:C I'm sorry. We read every single tag and review we get for this fic! We really do, and we stare at them for hours even if we can't respond! We appreciate every single one of you!_

 ** _Kytrin and I have written about a hundred stories spanning all kinds of fandoms. Parallels is our first time sharing the stories we came up with! We would love to share more fics with you guys! Our next fic is called Mythos._**

 ** _As such, since you all swarmed us with love and affection, you'll be getting your sneak peek from Mythos today!_**

-::-

* * *

 _Natsu sat bolt upright in his bed, a pain filled roar swelling in his chest and tears streaming down his face. He opened his mouth, but only a brief shout came out before the confusion between his dreams and reality slammed into him._

 _He panted softly, belatedly aware he was drenched in sweat, and scrubbed at his eyes as he tried to figure out what was going on._

 _It had been so vivid._

 _He could feel the grief constricting his throat, and the need to scream and rage at the injustice of losing his father just when they'd found each other again still clawing at him. It was only through sheer willpower that he swallowed it back down._

 _But he wasn't on a battlefield._

 _He was in his room, sitting in bed._

 _The contradiction was enough to disorient him completely until a pair of slim arms curled around him._

 _"Natsu?"_

 _He relaxed almost immediately under that touch and felt a smile tugging at his lips despite the confusing and conflicting emotions tearing through him._

 _"Hey Luce." He murmured and shifted around to look at her, "Sorry for waking you."_


	57. The Divine Comedy

_**Act 4**_

 _ **5 left**_

* * *

 _ **57**_

 _ **The Divine Comedy**_

 _"Into the eternal darkness, into fire and into ice. "_

― Dante Alighieri _ **, The Divine Comedy**_

* * *

Lucy was jolted out of her own slumber by Natsu suddenly jerking and letting out a roar of agony.

She nearly leapt to her feet in alarm as he began twisting and writhing on the mattress, "Natsu!"

She grabbed hold of his shoulder and immediately jerked her hand away with a hiss as it was sizzling hot. What was happening? Was this a result of his dream with Zeref?

It had to be.

She didn't understand what could've caused this reaction, but there was no doubt who was responsible.

She frowned at the thought, but immediately had to scramble out of the way as Natsu flailed in his sleep again and markings very unlike his dragon scales began decorating his skin.

This could not be in any way good.

She rolled out of bed and dove for her phone lacrima, punching Gray's number frantically.

It took three rings before she heard a mumbled, "H'lo?" On the other end, and a more feminine voice in the background asking who it was.

"Gray!" She cried urgently, "I need you, Juvia, and everyone you can get at Natsu's lair right now!"

That woke the ice mage up and he frowned as he sat up in bed, already getting up, "What happened?"

He could hear the sound of Natsu's screams in the background and paused just long enough to pull on some pants and jam his feet into shoes before sprinting for the door. Whatever this was it was bad.

"I'm not sure!" Lucy replied, watching Natsu worriedly, "He was going to try and use the bond to talk to Zeref and get some answers, but something's gone wrong. He started screaming all of a sudden and now he's burning hot and black markings and things are appearing!"

Gray swore violently as he put on some speed, recognizing the description of those demonic signs, "Lucy, you have to get out of there! He's transforming into End! I'm on my way, but it'll take me a few minutes to get there! Just hang on and I'll meet you! Call the nest in the meantime! They can help you contain him until I get there!"

"Gray you don't even know where his hoard is!" Lucy protested in exasperation, and that made the demonslayer skid to a halt on the spot.

"Oh. Right. Good point."

Lucy sighed, "Happy's staying with Gajeel and Lily tonight. Something about Exceed training. He can guide you guys here. I'll call Wendy to get Carla to help."

Gray nodded despite the fact that no one else could see him and took off in a new direction, "Thanks Lucy."

But before Lucy could breathe out in relief that the guild was coming, Natsu released another deafening roar, this time jerking himself awake. His shoulders bucked up off the mattress and his fingers clenched into fists.

Steam rolled off of him in visible waves and his eyes glowed red like twin, hot coals. He twisted himself to the left and off the bed, hitting the floor with a loud, growling thud.

"Lucy," Natsu groaned, slowly staggering up to his feet.

She watched in shocked horror as his skin began to crack. A fracture snapped over his eye, across his jawline and down his neck. Spiraling tattoos, black and warning like a poisonous frog bloomed from around his shoulders. His eyes glowed a burning crimson, madness creeping within their depths.

He tugged his scarf off, the haze of steam growing into a smoke screen. But Lucy could still see him, see the sense struggling to stay true in the wave of insanity clawing at him.

"Lucy get out of here," Natsu growled, his fingers sinking forward into the mattress. Lucy watched in shock as his nails dropped into the blanket as if made from paper. His entire body tensed, muscles flexing with the effort to keep himself in place.

But as he did so, Lucy saw more cracks appearing, spider webbing out and beginning to decorate his chest like splinters. His breathing came heavier.

"Natsu, what's happening," Lucy thought better to reach out to him this time. She had learned her lesson before. Natsu's magic was volatile the best of times. As he was now?

Lucy had never seen this side of Natsu before.

She didn't even think the guild members had save a rare few.

"I'm losing control Lucy," Natsu panted, "Zeref- he's insane, but it's spreading to all demons, like an infect-!"

He cut off with another roar, hands clutching the sides of his head, eyes wild, "Lucy _**run**_!"

She gasped as he dropped to his knees, body heaving as he struggled to keep control. It was probably thanks to his strength he was able to hang on as long as he had, and Lucy gathered his scarf in her hands.

She hated leaving him like this. But alone, there was nothing she could do. Not against End.

Tears stung at her eyes and she clutched his scarf to her chest, "We're going to fix this!" She promised.

She wanted to touch him, to squeeze his shoulder or kiss his snarling mouth to assure him they _would_ find a way. They had managed every time so far, and they would continue.

But the heat was becoming unbearable, and the coins closest to Natsu were beginning to melt down into molten gold.

Natsu didn't seem to hear her.

"I love you Natsu, just hang on," Lucy bit her lip and turned, running towards the exit.

Lucy heard him roaring behind her, and felt tears sting her eyes as she put on more speed. She hated this. She didn't want to leave him. It was the last thing she wanted to ever do. But she couldn't fight him either.

She fumbled for her phone as she ran, not willing to let go of the scarf clutched tightly against her chest. It was still the beautiful faintly gray white it had settled on after the fight, which confused her, but she was grateful for it all the same.

It comforted her that her Natsu was still in there. Somewhere. Fighting.

She brought the phone up, and tried to dial Wendy, but got Sting and Yukino instead.

"Lucy! Are you alright?" The white dragon exclaimed the moment he picked up, which puzzled her even more until she realized that the tightness in her chest was being caused by sobbing.

"Sting..." She cried, her knees nearly buckling at the sound of his voice, so like Natsu's, "I was trying to call Wendy. Natsu's in trouble. Zeref..." She shook her head, trying to organize her thoughts, "Carla knows the way to his lair."

It took Sting about three seconds to put together most of what Lucy was incoherently trying to say.

Something bad had happened to Natsu because of Zeref, and she was calling for help from near his lair.

"Don't worry." He rumbled, "Yuki will call Wendy and let her know while I get Rogue up. We'll be there as fast as we can. Just hang on with me okay?"

Lucy sniffled as she heard the sound of cloth shifting and hurried motions in the background, probably from clothes being thrown on and Yukino getting out of bed, and felt a surge of gratitude that Sting was taking charge. She wasn't thinking clearly enough to plan anything, let alone deal with Natsu now that things had gotten so much exponentially worse.

But in the sea of confusion, there was something that struck out to her. Someone who might be able to tell what could influence a dragon's mind the way Zeref was. Who had come from the darkness.

Lucy wrapped the scarf back around her neck for warmth, the soft brush of dragon scales gave off an unnatural heat which she was grateful for. Stumbling around the woods at night in a simple pajama shirt was not the most ideal of situations. She was only grateful they both had the presence of mind to get dressed in case things went south.

She had to go to Fairy Tail, but it was a long run and an even longer walk.

Lucy had never tried doing this before. Not without Natsu by her side. But she took a deep breath and lifted her hands, her mind focusing on the Fairy Tail Guild door.

Come on...

The gate burst open in sparks of golden light, and a wet, relieved smile tore across her face. She knew she could do it, but opening gates, especially when she was alone - it was always risky magic.

But this was worth it. Lucy hated to think what would happen if Natsu lost complete control and escaped from his hoard. If he got into Magnolia and started to wreck the town...

A shudder ran up her spine as she remembered Hargeon.

This could easily be a hundred times worse.

Charging through the gate without another thought, Lucy found herself inside the guild hall, the lights darkened and the place empty.

But that was fine. She was looking for someone else.

She ran down into the wine cellar, and past rows of makeshift rooms, each one branded with scripts from both Levy and Freed.

She slammed her hands against one of the doors, drawing attention from the occupant inside.

The Oracian Seis was still dangerous. But the one she was visiting remained in Fairy Tail for the time being because of his connection to the newest member of their guild. Cobra.

"Ah, yeah. I hear ya, girl," He slithered up to the door, his eye appearing in the narrow window slot.

His head tilted and he seemed to be listening, a frown burrowing between his eyebrows.

"So Natsu's lost his mind to Zeref, huh? Back to being End then I guess. Sucks to be anyone out of a cell," Cobra smirked at her.

"You know about dragons, Zeref, and Natsu!" Lucy snapped at the door, "You _must_ know how to help him! If Natsu loses control and attacks the guild, everyone is in danger!"

It was a low blow, but Lucy's thoughts betrayed her to Cobra's magic before she even had to say a word.

"Including Kinana you mean," Cobra growled, fangs bared at the door.

His eyes flashed down to her scarf and then back up at Lucy, "Fine. You've made your point. I take it you've done some research into the subject yourself. Your thoughts are a jumble, but you think that ratty old scarf can help?"

Lucy took a deep breath, trying to calm the hysteria threatening to blossom at any moment, "The scarf was a gift to his father from the Celestial Spirit King." She explained, "It's imbued with Igneel's will. The more Natsu fell to darkness, the more he strayed from Igneel's teachings, the darker the scarf became."

She held up the end, "It's still white. That means Natsu hasn't lost himself to darkness. He's still in there. He's just lost control."

She took a step closer to Cobra, her thoughts clearing the more she talked, "The scarf is a connection to Natsu. As real as the one he has with his brother..."

"You think it can be used to save him." Cobra finished, a little reluctant admiration on his face, "Not bad. But to do what you're thinking you'll have to completely overpower the connection he's got to Zeref."

He smirked at her expression and crossed his arms, "Think of it like this. Jellal had to be beaten out of his possession. Which is basically what this is."

He pointed at the scarf, "That is an _in_ , but that's all it is. Whatever you do you're going to have to do it so thoroughly that nothing can stick."

Lucy frowned as her thoughts began to race, and Cobra's smirk widened, "You're pretty clever when you're not hysterical." He purred, "And you're on the right track. Can't say if what you're thinking will work or not, but it's probably the best shot you'll have of reaching him."

Lucy blinked at that and eyed him for a long moment, not bothering to vocalize her thanks and a promise to get Kinana to him if everything fell apart. She could tell he heard it by the way his eyes widened and the terse way he nodded at her.

She nodded back and turned her mind back to the next step, determination lining every one of her features. She had a job to do now. A plan. And she needed to get to work.

* * *

 _ **Short chapter this time around guys, but we have fun in store for you guys really soon :D I updated later this time because I was in bed when I remembered and I couldn't BEAR to get out of bed.**_

 _ **In other news, you all showed up again, so here's another sneak peek!**_

* * *

 _"Containing Natsu here is the priority. We can't let him out of his hoard and into Magnolia," Erza flashed a worried look at the others._

 _Before anyone could respond, a new, sudden rush of heat enveloped over them, and a winged silhouette appeared at the opening of the cave._

 _Natsu emerged in a cloud of smoke, black, spiraling horns sprouting from rosy hair, and blackened cracks all across his body. Red scales gleamed out in struggle against the rising demon, but the snarl that emerged from him was frightening enough to make hair stand on end._

 _" **Go away** ," Natsu hissed in a voice so low and garbled, its warning almost didn't make sense._


	58. A Midsummer Night Dream

**ACT 4**

 **4**

* * *

 **58**

 **A Midsummer Night's Dream**

 _"The course of true love never did run smooth." ―_

William Shakespeare **,** **A Midsummer Night's Dream**

* * *

Gray swore as he and most of the the rest of the guild stared at the entrance to Natsu's hoard, heat blaring from the opening. Never before had they been able to find the dragon's home, not even a trace, it was so well hidden. But with Happy and Carla guiding the way it had been almost embarrassingly easy.

However, now Gray was almost wishing they hadn't.

The grass and plant life had begun to die and wilt just from the heat pounding into them. It was _boiling_.

Juvia gasped nearby, her wintery coat getting pulled off in favor of getting some more air. Personally Gray was just glad he had pants on.

Thank small mercies for his stripping habit.

Another pulse of heat rushed out, and Gray glanced back at the others who had gathered to try and contain Natsu. Lucy was nowhere in sight, and Gray was worried she had been trapped inside the hoard with Natsu.

"Any sign of Lucy?" Yukino called out fearfully, heralding the approach of the remaining dragons, "The last time we talked to her was a while ago and she didn't sound good!"

"Not yet," Erza replied tensely, but reached over and set a hand on Wendy's head. The little dragonslayer looked worried and Erza gave her a soft smile, "Don't worry. She'll be fine. Lucy would have known to get out of there."

"Containing Natsu here is the priority. We can't let him out of his hoard and into Magnolia," Erza continued firmly. However, before anyone could respond, a new, sudden rush of heat enveloped over them, and a winged silhouette appeared at the opening of the cave.

Natsu emerged in a cloud of smoke, black, spiraling horns sprouting from rosy hair, and blackened cracks all across his body. Red scales gleamed out in struggle against the rising demon, but the snarl that emerged from him was frightening enough to make hair stand on end.

" _ **Go away**_ ," Natsu hissed in a voice so low and garbled, its warning almost didn't make sense.

Before any of them could respond the glow of a gate opening flashed and Lucy stepped out. She looked disheveled, but mostly unharmed. However, unlike when Sting and Gray had been talking to her, her chin was lifted stubbornly and she was eyeing Natsu with a determined look that would not have looked out of place on the dragon himself.

It certainly surprised Natsu.

Even in his madness he reacted to that look, and took a confused half a step backwards, "Lucy..."

Lucy nodded at the growl, "That's right Natsu." She replied, "I told you we were going to fix this and I'm not breaking my promise."

She kept her eyes on him as she carefully edged around to where Gray and the others were standing, not trusting the heat if she got too close again.

"I can fix this." She told him, "But I need you to keep fighting it. Just a little longer. Try your best. We'll help you. I promise."

She glanced over her shoulder at Gray, "I have a plan, but I need you guys to cool him off enough I can get close."

Gray smirked as the temperature around him plunged, "We can do that."

Natsu started growling at the implied threat, but Gray just smirked back as the dragons joined him, "Not this time you pyro."

He had no idea what Lucy had in mind, but he trusted her when she said she did have a plan. Nor was he the only one. It only took a moment for the others to line up with him, preparing for battle.

"If it's cool Lucy wants, then that is what she will get!" Erza exclaimed as she requipped.

That was apparently enough for Natsu as his expression darkened and he lunged for them.

A stream of fire erupted, spreading out in an uncontrolled flame as sense left Natsu's eyes. A guttural snarl ripped from his throat.

"Hold steady!" Makarov shouted out, swelling in size to swat at Natsu before he could venture too close to Erza and Gray.

The flames raced up the Master's arm, forcing a minor retreat as the guild began their defense. Natsu was like a wrecking ball. The attacks certainly connected and struck him, but it was like he was oblivious to it.

The madness had seeped into his mind and made it impossible for him to even feel pain from attacks despite the magic specifically designed to combat demons that Gray used.

It was a minor miracle he hadn't transformed into his dragon shape, a sign if any that Natsu was still struggling with himself.

Lucy grimaced and joined the fray, using Aries' wool bomb to keep Natsu's more dangerous attacks from striking and smothering his flames. Something that clearly irritated the insane demon, but despite his fury he was clearly only sending half-hearted attacks her way.

It seemed Natsu still recognized her, even in the heat of battle. He might have been roaring plumes of fire in an unrecognized fury at his guildmates, and even his nest, but something about Lucy kept him from turning those flames on her.

Lucy touched the scarf around her neck, wondering if that had something to do with it when Natsu once again turned away from her to throw Droy into Gajeel.

"Gray! Now!" Lucy shouted at him as Natsu caught his balance, taking advantage of the fact Natsu was turning away from her.

"Right!" Gray shouted back at her, his demonslaying tattoo rising up onto his forearm. He got into position, "Ready!"

Natsu turned in a lightening fast blur Gray, fire burning at the back of his throat. The demonslayer was nearly taken by surprise when a whip dragged around Natsu's neck and his head was yanked towards the side.

Lucy kept her shaking arms on her whip, the cord straining under the effort to keep him from frying Gray. She knew it was risky with fire boiling in the back of his throat, threatening to rush out at any moment. But the red, frightened gleam in Natsu's eyes kept his mouth shut. His teeth ground together as he tried to force his head away from her, so she held on as tight as she could. Natsu wouldn't release his flames when he was facing her.

But his body was pulling her, tender heels digging into the hot earth. Natsu was forcing his way back towards Gray, whether he was leashed or not.

At least until he was struck from the back by Erza, donning her Flame Empress armor, a watery sword clenched in her hand and dousing the flames coming from his body for a split second.

Steam rose from Natsu's shoulders and Erza sprang off the demon's back, "Gray!"

Not needing a better opening than that, Gray unleashed a wave of ice magic, trapping Natsu's super-heated body in a ball of ice.

"This is your chance Lucy!" Gray shouted at her as Natsu let out a roar of fury. It was so loud, so monstrous in volume, Lucy felt it vibrate in her very ribs.

Natsu's limbs thrashed, and the dragons pounced on them. Gajeel's steel claws sank into Natsu's wrists while Sting and Rogue wrenched at his madly flapping wings.

Lucy didn't waste time, running towards the dragons and wedging herself in between their bulky bodies. Her heart trembled in fear and she ran up to Natsu, staring into his red eyes.

" _Lucy, you can't save me_ ," Natsu struggled out between his grinding fangs.

Her heart broke at the expression on his face, wild with fear. Fear for her and what he was doing to the guild. He was still there. Still fighting.

"Yes I can!" Lucy shouted back at him and flung his scarf around his neck, twisting the other end around her as well. She moved in close to him, even as he tried to tug his head away from her. He was burning so hot, he was afraid her skin would blister even by touching him.

But she stubbornly pressed her forehead against his.

"I'm not going to let you go." She whispered, ignoring how hot his forehead was. It wasn't burning, and that was all that mattered.

She gripped the scarf tightly as she closed her eyes, and focused on what bound them together so strongly. The one thing that would overwhelm the artificial hate and fury in him now. Overwhelm it so completely there would never be any chance of this happening to him again.

"I love you." She whispered, opening her heart and her magic to the scarf, and through it to him.

The scarf flared a bright, shining white at that declaration. Natsu's eyes widened with shock, and he gasped as for the first time he felt something more from his scarf than soft heat and a gentle warmth of protection.

He couldn't have described it if he'd tried. It was like nothing he'd ever felt before, but it was glorious and it brought tears to his eyes.

"Lucy..." He whispered hoarsely, his markings fading under the strength of his shock and she responded by pressing herself closer.

"I love you." She repeated, her own voice thick with emotion, "And nothing will ever change that! And I'm not going to let Zeref, or anyone else, force you to do anything you don't want ever again!"

Her magic flared in response, a warm gold compared to the scarf's brilliant white, that seemed to wash over him from where they were connected. No one dared to breathe a word as they watched the display. Something was happening here. Something as profound and soul shaking as it was unprecedented.

Lucy neither knew, nor would have cared, about that. All she cared about was the dragon in front of her. She wanted him back. Wanted him whole and happy again. Like he had been before Zeref's influence. She wanted that with all her heart and was willing to throw every scrap of magic she had into making that happen.

Cobra had said she would need something powerful to overwhelm the connection to Zeref. This, the love between them, was the most powerful thing she could think of.

"Please come back to me." She pleaded, "Don't let Zeref win."

Natsu let out a choked sound of his own as he renewed his struggles. Not against her, but against the insanity. He could feel it. He could feel her love. Warm and beautiful and so pure it brought tears to his eyes. He'd never realized just how deeply she felt for him. Hearing the words was one thing, but this... he had to escape the madness holding him! He had to fight it!

He had to show her that she was not alone. That he felt the same way.

And from within his heart an answering warm glow of magic appeared.

And then a tension. One that swelled in his chest and made his body feel like it was burning to ash from within. He wondered if this was how the demons at Galuna island felt before they disappeared, but he struggled on.

He could feel Lucy's hands on his cheeks, her forehead against his. Her magic straining against his and trying to push through the haze in his mind.

He felt pressure building in his head, like a rope beginning to stretch tighter and tighter, a rush of desperate heat and flame boiling in the back of his throat. But he swallowed it back and didn't release it.

He felt her lips against his, trembling and soft, a desperate puff of air breathed against his skin, "Please Natsu..."

And it snapped.

Suddenly an ever present pressure, one he never knew was there, evaporated. Natsu felt dizzy, his eyes going unfocused. All his magic drained out of him and into the earth, a debilitating exhaustion pouring through him.

His knees buckled and he fell forward, ice crumbling away from him as he dropped heavily into Lucy's arms. She staggered under his weight but she held him tightly until Gajeel could lift him up by his arms to relieve some of the pressure on her.

Lucy helped as Natsu was laid down, his limbs boneless even as he stubbornly tried to move, "What- what happened...?"

"It seems as if most of his magic was purged from his body at once, along with whatever bond was with him," Makarov advanced towards the worried looking Lucy, "He'll need a moment to recharge."

"He's gone," Natsu said dazedly, "Zeref's influence, the bond-"

Makarov set a hand on her shoulder, "Tell me child, how did you manage such a thing?"

Lucy shook her head and bit her lip. She looked at Natsu, her hands coming up to cradle his head onto her lap, "All I did was out-stubborn Zeref."

"He wanted Natsu, but I wanted his happiness more," Lucy murmured, and Natsu's lips quirked.

"Ow," The demon complained.

Lucy laughed a little wetly, relieved tears slipping down her cheeks, "I think you'll live." She teased and leaned over to kiss him gently on the forehead while Wendy rushed over to inspect them both for injuries.

"That was pretty impressive though." Gray commented, trying not to let his own relief show, "I've never felt magic like that in my life."

Lucy blinked in surprise as she looked up at him, "Really?"

"It was incredible Lu!" Levy gushed, "The scarf was bright white, and you were glowing gold! And for a second I felt something. It was like the whole world was holding its breath!"

Lucy blushed at the description and looked down at Natsu, "It was your scarf that inspired me." She murmured to him, rubbing her fingers through his hair, "I had this feeling that it could help, since it was already connected to you in a way."

She smiled, "But Cobra gave me the clue I needed. He told me what I had to do to end a possession. Said I needed something strong enough to overwhelm it."

Natsu smiled back at her and managed to tiredly lift his hand to caress her cheek, "You're amazing Luce."

He didn't really care about the particulars now. All he cared about was that he had the most beautiful, amazing, woman love him, and that she had freed him.

"The power of love." Makarov murmured and gave them both a smile, "It's a powerful thing indeed."

Wendy broke the moment by taking that moment to sit back on her heels, "We should probably get Natsu back inside." She told them, and poked her big brother, "You need sleep, and it's cold out here."

"Hmph. Guess that means it's up to us to haul him back into his lair." Gajeel grunted with exaggerated irritation, "Since the runt can't even stand right now."

"Oi!" Natsu protested as Sting stepped forward, and helped pull Natsu upright so Gajeel could throw him over his shoulder, to Natsu's extreme indignation.

Which only caused a round of laughter from his guildmates.

Traitors.

"Put me down!" He growled, trying to flail against the hold, but not really up to more than feeble movements, "I'll be fine! Just gimme a sec! Hey! I didn't say you could go inside!"

"You didn't have to!" Gajeel cackled, his ruby eyes flashing in amusement at Natsu's weak kicks, "Damn Salamander. I could tie you into knots right now if I wanted to!"

Natsu hung upside down, his body swaying from left to right as Gajeel moved him and the rest of the nest all filed inside his hoard.

"Lucy, make them stooooop," Natsu whined as they all began to walk in, past the heaps of gold he had accidentally melted and to the clearing they had worked out.

"No can do," Lucy apologized, but smiled at him. She set a hand on his cheek right before Gajeel tossed Natsu sideways back onto his bed.

The fire dragon let out an undignified shriek and sank back into the pillows. It was still ridiculously warm in there, but it would be good to rejuvenate Natsu. Already the color was beginning to return to his cheeks.

"Besides, they're your nest. Which means you're going to be inviting them in here sooner or later anyway to help clean this place up and make it livable for everyone," Lucy teased.

Natsu groaned at the surprised look on the other dragon's faces and weakly covered his head in a pillow.

"Really?" Rogue asked, hardly daring to believe there was a permanent place they could stay at. For being nomadic dragons, he and his brother had barely even hoped for a territory to safely stay in, much less a genuine nest-home.

"Maybe..." Natsu mumbled and he groped out blindly for the covers, burying himself under the thickest blanket he could grab.

"We'll talk about this later," Gajeel growled, his eyes alit with interest, "Let's let the Salamander rest for now. We're going to have our hands full with other stuff until this whole Zeref thing blows over."

That caused Natsu's head to lift and he growled, trying to force himself upright, "Lucy broke the bond I had with Zeref. The one thing he could use to stay in contact with me."

"In other words, he's gonna be pissed," Sting translated.

Natsu nodded, but he thought it would be a little worse than that. 'Pissed' was too light of a term.

He had no idea how badly his brother had truly wanted him back by his side until he was caught in the throes of his madness. And as frightening as that was, Natsu found - he could relate to that.

Natsu had wanted a family too.

* * *

 _ **SPECIAL THANKS TO AJDRAKES FOR DRAWING LAST CHAPTER OF NATSU'S MELT DOWN. GUYS IT'S SO AMAZING YOU SHOULD CHECK IT OUUUUUT! I REBLOGGED IT ON MY BLOG (MSLEAD) IF YOU WANNA SEE IT. YOU TOTALLY SHOULD. I had kind of a down day today, UNEMPLOYMENT PENDS. arghhhhh.**_

 _ **So here's a sneak peek. :'D generous generous.**_

* * *

 _"Magnolia. Fairy Tail," Zeref's eyes narrowed, "This time there will be no mercy. No plans. Just utter destruction. We will bring that guild and town to its knees. Only my brother and Lucy will be spared."_

 _"The girl m'lord?" Mard Geer asked, his eyes wide._

 _Zeref nodded, his hands locking behind his back, "Yes. We will keep Miss Heartfilia alive just long enough to see Natsu at his rightful place. As my right hand, and the head of Tartaros."_

 _"His intended spot all along?" Mard Geer nodded, "And then we kill her?"_

 _Zeref nodded._

 _"Only after she's suffered, will she be permitted to die."_


	59. Starship Troopers

_**ACT 4**_

 _ **WE COMBINED CHAPTERS... SO-**_

 _ **WHO KNOWS?**_

* * *

 _ **59**_

 _ **Starship Troopers**_

 _"The best things in life are beyond money; their price is agony and sweat and devotion"_

― Robert A. Heinlein _ **, Starship Troopers**_

* * *

Zeref's eyes snapped open as the precious connection between him and Natsu snapped dissolved as if it had never been.

He'd felt Lucy pushing at it from the outside, and had initially laughed at her efforts, but the girl had more power than he'd realized and by the time he'd discovered he was in true danger of losing his only current link to Natsu it was too late. He hadn't been able to push enough power through to stop her.

He growled as he got to his feet, fury welling in him.

How dare she!

How dare that empty-headed blond come between him and his brother!

He'd planned to keep her alive, due to Natsu's attachment to her, but that was in the past.

Lucy Heartfilia was too dangerous to be allowed to live.

It would no doubt hurt Natsu, but it was for the best. Just like with Igneel. He would make sure Natsu understood. Tartaros had a tank waiting for just that purpose. But first, he would destroy that insignificant town and the woman who had so confused his brother.

It was her fault. All of it. And he was going to make her pay.

He stormed out of the throne room, "Mard Geer!" He snapped, the demon coming to attention briskly at his master's word, "Set a course for Magnolia. My wayward brother has proved he will not come to me. Therefore we must go to him."

He turned a hard look on the demon, "Level anyone or anything that gets in our way."

"Right away Master Zeref!" Mard Geer purred, uncertain what had made his creator so angry, but more than happy to follow his instructions.

Mard Geer approached Zeref, keeping himself out of the way in favor of keeping him happy, "May I ask what our target is?"

The black wizard did not answer at first. Instead he turned towards the window, watching as the ground rolled out of sight under their flying vessel. Grimiore Heart and Tartaros. Both remained under his command even though Fairy Tail had taken the Oracian Seis from him.

"I believe I just told you what our target was," Zeref's eyes flamed red.

Outside, heavy clouds began to form, a forewarning of their approach and the force of Zeref's anger.

"Magnolia. Fairy Tail," Zeref's eyes narrowed, "This time there will be no mercy. No plans. Just utter destruction. We will bring that guild and town to its knees. Only my brother and Lucy will be spared."

"The girl m'lord?" Mard Geer asked, his eyes wide.

Zeref nodded, his hands locking behind his back, "Yes. We will keep Miss Heartfilia alive just long enough to see Natsu at his rightful place. As my right hand, and the head of Tartaros."

"His intended spot all along?" Mard Geer nodded, "And then we kill her?"

Zeref nodded.

"Only after she's suffered, will she be permitted to die."

-::-

Lucy sneezed.

"Ew Lucy! That's gross!" Happy crowed from where he was flying overhead, a bandana tied over his fur and a broom in his tiny paws.

"Sorry Happy!" Lucy coughed, tucking her nose under her shirt as she waved around a pile of dust from getting into her eyes, "There's just so much dirt in here! When was the last time you cleaned Natsu?"

The dragon was hefting a pile of paintings over his head and he shrugged at Lucy, an oblivious smile on his face.

"Uh, never?" He answered, more question than statement.

Lucy sighed and shook her head, "Is there some kind of cosmic law that says men and boys have to be slobs?"

"Would you like me to punish him princess?"

Lucy yelped at Virgo's sudden appearance, "Virgo! What are you doing here?"

"I thought you might like some refreshment princess." The spirit replied without changing expression, and gestured to the large table groaning with food and drink she'd somehow brought with her.

"How did you even-?" Lucy started only to be interrupted by Natsu's excited shout as he flung the paintings to the side and dashed over to the table.

"Aw man, this looks great!" He drooled, and grabbed a large piece of steaming meat, "Thanks Virgo! You're the best!"

"Oi! Don't go hoggin' it Salamander!" Gajeel growled as he stomped up with the rest of the nest and snatched a piece of his own.

"Oh yeah... we have dragons." Lucy sighed, "I forgot."

Yukino giggled lightly and dropped a hand on Lucy's shoulder, "We should join them before it's all gone."

Lucy nodded, thinking that despite the frequent clashes, and whining, this was actually a lot of fun with the whole nest involved. Natsu was still growling about how they shouldn't get any ideas or anything, but she could tell it was mostly for show.

The sight of Wendy's wide, hopeful, eyes alone had probably done more to make him cave than anything she could've done. Which was probably why he'd agreed to let them help clean the place up at all.

It helped that not even Gajeel had so much as looked covetously at a single gold coin of Natsu's. At least not for more than a few moments. It seemed that the prospect of a real nest-home was enough to keep even usual dragon greed in check.

Which amused her greatly.

They were all looking at places in the nest which would satisfy their needs, but none of it really made sense to Lucy. They could clean this place forever and never get anywhere.

At least Natsu had managed to consolidate some of the space in his hoard by melting down some of his gold coin into bars.

Then Lucy had helped him budget out what they would need to make the place habitable, insisting on fully functional and modern bathrooms. Which had not been a great struggle really. Even Natsu had to admit he had grown fond of running water and indoor plumbing.

So everyone laughed and shouted and pulled at one another's hair as they all ate and got back to work. Gajeel lifted Wendy up onto his shoulders so she could blow dust from the rafters.

Sting and Natsu burned away blockages, while Rogue slunk into hard to reach, shadowed spaces to dust.

When they were finally done for the day, they headed outside the hoard and looked up at the sky.

"Looks like it's going to storm," Yukino observed.

The dragons shifted restlessly, specifically Wendy who felt the wind's breeze and shook her head.

"It doesn't smell like rain," she murmured.

"That's cause it ain't rain." Gajeel growled, disbelief and a touch of actual fear in his voice, "That's somethin' way worse."

"What is it?" Wendy asked in confusion only to squeak with surprise when Gajeel picked her up.

"We gotta get to the guild as fast as possible!"

It was Lucy's turn to yelp in surprise as Natsu picked her up, scales already appearing on his skin, "Wait! What's going on? Gajeel what is that stuff?"

But it wasn't Gajeel who answered her. It was Natsu.

"Zeref." He growled lowly, angrily, "That's Zeref's cloud. And you can bet Tartaros is right in the middle of it."

He spread his wings and flew off as fast as he could go back to Magnolia and Fairy Tail. They were about to have a fight the likes of which hadn't been seen since the end of the Celestial War on their hands.

Fortunately, Fairy Tail hadn't been idle since Zeref's return. They'd always known they might have to face another attack like they had with the Oracion Seis, and had worked hard to prepare for it as best they could.

He landed lightly in front of the guild door and gently set Lucy down before slamming his way inside, "Trouble gramps!" He roared, no humor in his expression as he stalked forward, "Zeref and Tartaros are on their way."

He growled softly, "We spotted his cloud."

"Then it looks like our fight is just beginning," Makarov said gravely. He looked at the dragons who were still dressed in their cleaning clothes.

"We'll meet him head on then. Something tells me that Zeref is not in the mood for trickery," Makarov headed outside, the rest of the guild on his heels.

"Mira, call Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale. We might find ourselves in need of their help," He sighed and looked up, "It's now time for us to fight to protect our guild. We knew this was coming."

He glanced at his guild members, "We have enjoyed peace for a long time brats! Now it's time to fight to keep it!"

There was an answering roar of agreement and the guild members broke apart to scatter and man their defenses. This is something they had planned for a while. So now It was time to put it into action.

Wendy tugged at Lucy's sleeve while everyone scrambled to get to their positions and begin final preparations, "Lucy..." She said nervously, "I need to give you something."

Lucy blinked in surprise at Wendy and tilted her head slightly, wondering what it could be and why she would be so nervous, "What is it?"

Wendy reached under her shirt and pulled out a chain, and Lucy's eyes widened as she recognized the golden key dangling from the end of it, "Wendy..."

"It... It was Grandina's." Wendy said tremulously, "She told me I had to protect it, and I have, but we're about to fight and all those demons are after you. We don't know what they can do and Sagittarius is the best archer..."

She cut off as Lucy's hands dropped gently on her shoulders, "Wendy, you don't have to do this." She smiled, "I know how much that treasure means to you, and I'm honored, but it's okay if you don't want to give up your mother's key."

Wendy sniffed a little, tears forming in her eyes, "But that's just it Lucy!" She exclaimed, "You, and Levy, and Yukino and everyone have been there for me since you found me! You took me in and gave me a nest! You're the nicest queen I've ever seen!"

She hugged the celestial mage tightly, "I can't stand the idea of something happening to you!" She pulled back and held out the key, "So please! Let me help you for a change!"

Lucy felt a lump rise in her throat and she nodded as she closed her hand around the key and hugged Wendy tight, "Thank you Wendy." She murmured, "I promise I'll take really good care of him."

Natsu dropped his hand onto Wendy's head and gave her a crooked grin, "Thanks Wendy. That's going to help out a lot." He grinned at Lucy.

"Think there's enough time to make a contract before our guests arrive?" He smirked up at them.

The sky was rapidly darkening, and he curled his fingers into fists. Maybe they wouldn't have as much time as they would have preferred, but that was alright.

"I think it'll have to wait," Lucy said tensely. The ground began to tremble and shake under their feet as the guild came close.

"We're up against Tartaros and Grimoire Heart, this is going to be a tough one," Gajeel growled.

"Scared?" Gray smirked at the iron dragon, who scowled in response.

"As if," He grinned fiercely.

"Alright!" Natsu roared as the cube appeared on the horizon, just within sight, "I'm all fired up now!"

So, it seemed, was the enemy.

A very familiar ship took off from the surface of Tartaros as it neared the outskirts of the town, and Lucy repressed a shiver at the memory of that ship and the people on it.

She and Yukino glanced at each other, and worlds of understanding passed between them. Never again. They were not going to allow that ship to terrorize them or anyone else ever again. They would see it blown sky high first.

"Looks like Zeref's sending out his cannon fodder." Jellal growled, "Get ready! Grimoire Heart consists of a few very strong members and large numbers of weak ones they use as cannon fodder!"

"Sounds like fun!" Natsu growled with a dark smirk.

It was true he hated full on war with a passion and had since the Celestial War, but he was itching for some payback for these jerks. Especially that asshole Rusty Rose for what he'd done to Lucy.

He'd never had the chance to settle things, and he really wanted to.

It seemed Grimoire Heart was just as eager as dozens of capsules dropped from the ship.

The battle had begun.

-::-

It was war, just as Gajeel remembered. The sting of metal in his mouth as he spat out rush after rush of shrapnel at the attacking forces.

Levy was a godsend, replenishing the dragon's magic with hastily scribbled out words, leaving several hunks of iron for Gajeel to sink his teeth into when he tired.

But it was dangerous, and there were threats on every side.

The entire guild of Fairy Tail struck back against their enemy. There was no time to be gentle or kind. Had Gajeel gotten his way, he would have transformed and begun attacking.

But there was no point yet into making himself a large target, much less risking stepping on his allies. They didn't have the advantage of being made out of metal.

A rush of air passed by Gajeel, and he whipped his head around as he caught sight of Natsu vaulting over a broken wall and slamming his fist into the face of someone who had just shot at him.

"Sloppy Gajeel!" Natsu cackled and ran off, ignoring at the way the other dragon rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," Gajeel grumbled, lifting his head and sniffing.

He had to get on board that ship. He had a feeling there was something inside which could eliminate their enemy.

"You up for a trip shrimp?" He called out to Levy. The woman glanced around at him, her hand reaching out into his and she nodded.

"Good! Lily!" Gajeel shouted, beckoning the Exceed over who was locked in battle of his own.

"Grab a hold of Levy! We're goin' hunting up above!" Gajeel shouted, his wings forming and snapping open on his back.

He shifted his weight and pressed into the air, Lily snagging a surprised Levy and flying after him, "All of their forces are on the ground! Their defense should be smaller up ahead!"

"Don't be so sure," Gajeel growled back to the feline, "We still have Tartaros to contend with."

-::-

Lucy spared a worried glance after Levy as she and Gajeel flew off towards that hated ship, but her vision was almost immediately obstructed by the sight of a goat man landing in front of her.

She couldn't read his expression very well, especially with the weird triangle sunglasses he had on, but she could certainly see the glare behind them. And feel it. It was as if whoever this guy was, who felt oddly familiar, had a special hatred for her for some reason.

"Well... one of the celestial mages." The man goat said, baaing slightly, "Tell me, have you ever heard of taboo?"

Lucy blinked, not sure what he was even talking about, when Leo suddenly appeared in front of her, "Wait what? Leo?"

"Lucy," Leo said tensely as he crouched for battle, "I need you to leave this one to me."

"What? Why?" Lucy protested, completely confused. It wasn't often Leo showed up unannounced like this now that they were contracted, and his sudden appearance startled her.

"Please Lucy!" Leo exclaimed, "Just go! I came on my own so I wouldn't drain your magic. I have this, and there are a lot of other enemies."

"I can't just let you fight on your own!" Lucy replied, getting her whip ready, only to pause when Leo shot a fierce look over his shoulder.

"Lucy there isn't time! Please! Just trust me on this!"

Lucy blinked and nodded. Whatever this was, it was obviously deeply personal to Leo, and she trusted him with her life.

"Enough of this!" The goat-man baaed, and launched some kind of attack that Leo blocked. Lucy didn't like it, but she took the moment to run as Leo had asked her to. Whatever was going on she hoped he was okay, and that he was willing to talk later.

Because she definitely wanted some answers.

There was no use squabbling over the details though, and Lucy turned and sprinted off. She ran in the direction she thought she last had seen Natsu disappear, and nearly got nailed by Natsu himself as a crystal ball dragged his body through the air and his limbs went windmilling around. He slammed into the wall of the guild, the bricks shaking and crumbling down around him.

"Natsu!" Lucy shouted in alarm, but the demon-dragon sat up, bits of broken brick and dust flying from his hair. He whipped around and gave the floating crystal ball which had just tenderized his face a deeply offended glare.

"Why you little-" Natsu snarled and jumped to his feet, slamming his fist into his palm, "I'm going to break that damn thing into a thousand irreparable pieces."

He snarled and slammed his fist into it, making true to his word as it burst under his strike like a grape.

But much to Lucy's surprise, the pieces froze in mid-fall before repairing themselves all at once until the crystal ball floated before Natsu once more, whole and new.

And it slammed straight into his gut again.

Wheezing, Natsu managed to catch the ball in his hands before it tries to fully crush his lungs, his eyes flashing with hot anger, _"Ultear!"_

He managed to twist himself to the side and scramble back up to his feet as he dodged the ball coming after him with deadly accuracy. And over the roaring of battle, Lucy thought she heard feminine laughter.

Her thought was brought to fruition when a woman she had seen only twice before rose from the roof of the guild. She was beautiful, with painted red lips and dark hair that fell in straight, silken locks around her pretty face.

By her side was a girl with pink curls of hair and headphones, and on the other was a man with glasses and a pompadour. A shiver ran down Lucy's spine at the sight of him.

That one. Rusty Rose. She remembered him all too vividly.

"Three of the Seven kin, right here and all for me?" Natsu purred at them, "Must be my lucky day!"

"Two!" Lucy stepped up, bringing Natsu's attention to her for the first time. He blinked at her uncomprehendingly.

"You have Two of the Seven Kin. Rusty Rose is _mine_ ," Lucy clarified fiercely, her eyes focusing on the gray haired man.

Natsu gave her a long look, opening his mouth to complain, but seemed to think better of it after a moment.

"Fine, suit yourself. I guess Ultear and Meredy will be enough of a workout for me," Natsu turned his attention on the two woman.

Before he could lunge into combat against them though, a new hand reached out and yanked hard on his scarf, nearly strangling the dragon mid-jump.

" _ **HERK!**_ "

The chilly gaze of Gray met him, Juvia by his side.

"These two are ours," Gray's eyes were locked on Ultear, "This is a personal fight."

"And Juvia will take on Meredy," Juvia insisted, her eyes locked on the pink haired girl beside Ultear. She extended her arms, water swirling to life from her limbs.

"You're _sidelining_ me?" Natsu growled incredulously. He whined at the thought, but his eyes flashed up to the ship.

"Yeah ya pyro. Go fight Zeref or something. Mavis only knows we have more than enough enemies to fight, so go occupy your time or something," Gray said shortly.

Gray's eyes locked on Ultear, "Lamia Scale will be here soon. Lyon will be more than happy to see you, sister."

Natsu's eyes widened at the discovery that Ultear was Gray's sister. No wonder he said it was personal! As reluctant as he was to just give up a fight he already had called dibs on… he knew better than to stick around. Not when he had his own battles to fight.

He snorted while Ultear stared down her nose at her brother, "You better not lose Dairy Queen. You're already embarrassing enough."

He waited just long enough to flash Gray a cheeky smirk when he turned to shoot a glare at him and ran off. Lucy, Gray, and Juvia would be fine.

Gray snorted derisively at Natsu's back, "Yeah whatever loser." He muttered, and turned his glare back onto Ultear, who seemed thoroughly amused by the byplay.

"How adorable." She purred, looking down her nose at him, "My pitiful little brother has made a friend with the demon dragon!"

Gray's eyes narrowed, "You're not going to get away with this Ultear!" He snarled, "I'm not going to let you disgrace our parent's memories anymore!"

Ultear's eyes widened and a crazed look entered them as she flung her orb at him, "You of all people do not get to speak of them!" She screamed.

Gray growled as he dodged the impact and launched his own attack at her. This was not going to be easy. Not by a long shot. And it made him glad that Lyon was on his way. He was sure he could beat her alone, but it would probably completely drain him doing so. And that was not good considering Tartaros was waiting in the wings.

"Hey watch it Gray!" Lucy yelped indignantly as she had to dodge one of his stray lances, "Friendly fire!"

Gray cringed, "Sorry Lucy!" He called, immediately re-formulating his plans, but Lucy paid no attention. Her focus was squarely on the foppish looking jerk in front of her.

"I've been waiting to meet you one on one Rusty Rose!" She growled furiously as she pulled out a key, "Open! Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

She was tempted to throw everything at him. To make him pay thoroughly for what he'd done to her. But caution told her not to spend all of her energy at once if she could help it. She was going to need every scrap of it if she was going to survive the battle to come.

-::-

The battle on the ground was chaos. The guild was split up and thinned out no matter how hard they tried to stay in something resembling a formation. But as it turned out, Fairy Tail was meant to thrive in chaos.

So when their reinforcements arrived in the form of Lamia Scale, Blue Pegasus, and Mermaid Heel, the first wave of Grimoire Heart's attack had already been beaten back.

With the exception of the Seven Kin.

During her fight with Rusty Rose, Lucy managed to catch a glimpse of the sky darkening further in a single patch as Jellal unleashed a heavenly body spell against a man who rooted himself in the earth, and wondered momentarily how bad his fight had to be to unleash _that_ spell.

And she was astonished when a soft glow appeared at her hip, and a quick glance revealed a new key suddenly sitting warmly at her side. She could practically taste Leo's sense of tired satisfaction radiating from his key, and realized that it had to have had something to do with his battle with the goat man. Which meant he must've won, and with his victory, a new key gleamed from her belt.

She was forced to dismiss both thought and observation a moment later though as she had to dodge another of her opponent's attacks. She growled slightly in frustration as she climbed back to her feet again. The Seven Kin were a considerably harder to defeat than she'd realized, and it wasn't long before Lucy found herself wishing for some help against him.

Fortunately, that help quickly appeared in the form of Elfman and Evergreen. The two had been knocked back already, but Lucy had to admit Evergreen and Elfman worked surprisingly well together. It was a combination she never would have imagined.

Unfortunately, their luck could only stretch so far, and Lucy was soon left facing the man who could bring his imagination literally to life alone once again. This time, however, she was not going to back down. Somewhere between watching Elfman and Evergreen fight for her, and seeing how hard the others were fighting, something in her had snapped.

"You disgraced my mom's memory," Lucy snapped, her temper flaring. It was oddly reminiscent of Natsu's own anger, and she thought perhaps some of his fire had rubbed off on her.

That was fine.

No, in fact it was _perfect_.

Her anger gave her strength and she used it to focus her mind on what she wanted to do. She'd never done this outside of training, but she could not think of a better time than now to do it. Rusty Rose was going to pay, and she was going to make sure he paid hard.

She pulled out her final key, "Open!" She growled, "Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!"

She waited a moment for the bull to arrive, never taking her eyes off her target, as he went through his usual ogling, "Taurus!" She snapped, catching his attention, and flared her magic around her, "Taurus Form!"

She could sense Taurus' surprise that she was going to try activating his stardress now, but the moment passed quickly and he eagerly lent her the strength and power she was asking for. Their opponent had clearly made his mistress very angry, and that was more than enough reason to give her everything he had.

Lucy flashed him a smile as the dress settled over her form, and she pulled her whip taut, "Alright Rusty Rose! You are going _down_!"

The sleazy looking dark mage huffed derisively, "Please! As if such pathetic magic could harm one of the Seven Kin!"

He never got the chance to continue as an irate Lucy lashed her whip down between them, causing the ground to rupture, and sending him flying unexpectedly.

"You were saying?" Lucy replied quietly, almost calmly if it weren't for the fire burning in her eyes.

Rusty Rose paled a little, but quickly leapt back to his feet with a scowl and pressed his hands to his temples, "We'll see how well your pretty new clothes can last against my Arc of Embodiment."

"Kick his ass Lucy!" Evergreen called from where she and Elfman were still recovering from his Tower of Dingir.

Lucy nodded once as she and Taurus spun into combat in perfect sync.

Never was Lucy more grateful for the lessons she had with her spirits, Jellal and Natsu. She remembered Jellal's wise words about keeping her footing, Leo's advice on channeling her magic, and Natsu's hands-on approach of teaching.

He always said doing the actions was more effective than learning any theory and had always lunged right into the steps with her. Of course it resulted in bruised pride more often than not, but having Natsu wrestle with her in the past made it so fighting a powderpuff like Rusty Rose was much easier.

For all of his power, he was no dragon.

And Lucy used that to her advantage. She opened a gate under her feet, dropping down on top of him and wrapping him with her whip. Before he could retaliate with his magic, she used the momentum from her gate to cannon him into the ground, using the full strength of her stardress.

The earth cracked satisfyingly under her throw, and Rusty Rose found himself buried in the dirt from the waist down. His body twitched and went limp.

Lucy panted out a breath, staring at the rear of the man who had sullied the memory of her mother.

And she thought he was very small.

Lucy wondered for the moment, if taking revenge like this against Rusty Rose was comparable to how Natsu felt all those years ago when he burned the magic council or took methodical revenge on those who had abused him over the years.

She looked at her spirit and smiled. No. It was different still, despite the malicious pride she felt in kicking Rusty's ass.

Even without her mom by her side, Lucy wasn't alone.

"Thank you Taurus," Lucy gave him a happy look and released the star dress, staggering a little.

Elfman hefted up Rusty Rose, plucking him out of the dirt like he would a weed, "You go catch up with the others Lucy. I'm going to drop this jerk off with Freed so he can start making a cell to contain these losers."

Lucy nodded, "Thanks Elfman." She replied and glanced around the battlefield for any sign of Natsu. She knew there was no way he wasn't fighting one of the Kin. The question was which one.

She staggered a bit as the ground suddenly shook and a column of flame erupted from the earth.

"When in doubt follow the flaming destruction." She muttered to herself in mingled amusement and exasperation and took off in that direction.

She honestly wasn't sure how much help she would be after her own fight, but she wasn't about to stay where she was without knowing. Fortunately, by the time she got there it was clear Natsu had everything well in hand. She found him sitting on top of a pile of debris, under which a snobby looking guy with a blue braid could be seen, and cackling loudly.

"So judging by the level of destruction, and how badly that guy is beat up... I'd say you had fun." She smirked at him, well aware by now of how he classed 'fun' in situations like this.

"Lucy!" Natsu gasped happily, and leapt lightly off his impromptu mountain to rush over and inspect her, "Wow! You look like you had some fun too!" He grinned broadly, "How's Rusty Rose?"

Lucy grinned fiercely, "Thrashed and being taken to Freed by Elfman for containment!" She reached up to kiss him lightly, "And I managed to unlock my stardress in the process."

Natsu's eyes widened, "Seriously?"

He knew that was a major achievement for her. In the past she'd had difficulty holding it for more than a few moments. To be able to call it up long enough to use it in battle was really impressive.

His grin broadened at her nod and spun her around happily, "That's great Luce! I knew you could do it!"

Blue Note took that moment to groan and try to make his way out of his debris pile, but was quickly disabused of that notion when Natsu flashed him a dark look over his shoulder and blasted another ground quaking column of fire at him.

He craned his head back as the man went flying, his expression bored as he watched him sail off.

"Dunno what that guy's problem was. He was obsessed with flying," Natsu turned his attention back to Lucy, a fangy grin on his face.

"Looks like you gave him his wish," Lucy watched in shock. It really astounded her the depth of Natsu's power sometimes. He seemed to be growing into it nicely. Or rather, he always had it, but since being sealed by Lucy, Natsu had been reduced back to training wheels. Reigniting his inner dragon seemed to have done wonders for him. Although it did leave Lucy a little worried about what that meant when they faced Zeref.

"Maybe," Natsu grinned and wrapped an arm around her, "I think it's time we make our way to the top, don't you? No need to waste our time with the small fry, right?"

Lucy nodded firmly although she wasn't sure what he classified as 'small fry' and held her keys to her hip, "Yeah. I saw Gajeel and Levy head up there earlier. I think they probably need help too. They went straight for Tartaros and it's been a while!"

Natsu's hands flattened around Lucy's waist and he met her eyes, "Going up then?"

She watched wings break free from his back, ruby scales flashing in the light of his fires as they appeared on tan skin. She wrapped her arms around his neck. As usual she was unafraid of him in whatever form he took.

His knees bent and he pushed up through the air, wings flapping through the air with Lucy guarded in his arms, "Alright! Let's go kick their ass!" He let out a laughing roar.

But Lucy could look at his eyes and tell Natsu was grimly serious. Just ahead was Zeref.

Zeref and the rest of Tartaros.

Of course, between them and Tartaros was Hades and his ship.

* * *

 _ **And here we are again. IT'S THE FIIIIIIIINAL COUNT DOOOOOOOOWN. *wiggles eyebrows* We're almost done guys. Please keep hanging in there and telling us what you like or don't like! We're counting on you all :'D *blows kisses***_

* * *

 _He could hear the sound of straining and snapping metal and splintering wood and other less identifiable sounds, and narrowed his eyes, "Sounds like Gajeel's hogging all the fun for himself!" He fumed, "That jerk!"_

 _Before Lucy could reply he began flapping towards the ship as fast as he could go, but no sooner had he gotten within range than something burst from inside. It was... a metal dragon tail?_

 _Lucy's eyes bugged out, "Is he seriously transforming while inside that thing?!" She yelped._

 _It seemed he was._

 _The tail lashed, bashing chunks of the hull to bits in the process, while a gigantic metal leg kicked through the bottom and the whole thing rolled crazily as the metal drake inside smashed his way out._

 _"Uh oh," Natsu squeaked right before Gajeel's tail caught him on the side and he went spinning into one of his metal wings. Both he and Lucy screamed in terror and surprise as they went rolling down it and splatted right onto Gajeel's back._


	60. Parallels

_**Act 4**_

 _ **FINAL CHAPTER**_

* * *

 _ **60**_

 _ **Parallels**_

" _a person or thing that is similar or analogous to another."_

* * *

Natsu growled at the sight of the warship looming above them. The memory of the last time he'd seen it was still very vivid, and he definitely didn't trust Hades not to fire on them while they were passing by.

"I think we gotta make a detour Lucy." He growled as he angled his flight to take them to the ship instead, and Lucy nodded her agreement.

However, before they could get any closer the ship suddenly rocked violently and a thick plume of black smoke erupted from somewhere inside. Natsu gawked as he slowed down to a hover and watched as it rocked again. Only this time it didn't stop at a rock.

He could hear the sound of straining and snapping metal and splintering wood and other less identifiable sounds, and narrowed his eyes, "Sounds like Gajeel's hogging all the fun for himself!" He fumed, "That jerk!"

Before Lucy could reply he began flapping towards the ship as fast as he could go, but no sooner had he gotten within range than something burst from inside. It was... a metal dragon tail?

Lucy's eyes bugged out, "Is he seriously transforming while inside that thing?!" She yelped.

It seemed he was.

The tail lashed, bashing chunks of the hull to bits in the process, while a gigantic metal leg kicked through the bottom and the whole thing rolled crazily as the metal drake inside smashed his way out.

"Uh oh," Natsu squeaked right before Gajeel's tail caught him on the side and he went spinning into one of his metal wings. Both he and Lucy screamed in terror and surprise as they went rolling down it and splatted right onto Gajeel's back.

Lucy was still folded securely in Natsu's arms, but both were rigid with surprise and Natsu's own wings were bent awkwardly around them,

"That was..." Lucy trembled as Gajeel continued to break out without even noticing he had passengers.

"Fun?" Natsu laughed, nerves lighting his face but humor still pouring through his smile.

Shaking her head and pulling herself from Natsu's arms, Lucy managed to roll up to her feet and grab onto one of Gajeel's back spines. Natsu also rolled onto his feet, but he balanced well on the dragon's back.

Lucy used Gajeel's spines like monkey bars to brace herself as she and Natsu climbed along Gajeel's and up his neck. At one point Natsu was forced to take her hand and drag Lucy along because of the issue with balancing, but they slid down together between Gajeel's eyes.

"Thanks for smashin' into us Metal head!" Natsu yelled into one giant, red eye, "You're a lousy driver!"

"Eh? Salamander? The hell are you doin' here? Weren't you crawling on the ground screaming like a chicken or something?" Gajeel snorted at him, flicking off the remnants of the ship from his tail.

"Gajeel!" Lucy shouted over Natsu's fuming, "Where's Levy and Pantherlily? Are they okay!"

The dragon swept his head in a nod, lifting his claws up and parting them just a bit to show both Pantherlily, Levy and...

"Happy!" Lucy shouted at the blue kitten who was huddled in Levy's arms, "How did you get up here?"

The feline flicked his tail and gave Lucy a smug look, "Well if you must know, I saw Levy flying up with Lily and decided to come along! I even found this giant weird tissue thing!"

"It was Master Hades' heart," Gajeel rolled his eyes, "The party crasher was actually pretty useful."

The dragon went cross eyed as he glared at Natsu, "Now you and blondie hop on board! The next stop is Tartaros! And if I'm not mistaken, the rest of the nest already started heading up there! I think I even saw Erza riding Sting."

"Bet he loved that," Natsu snorted as he grabbed Lucy's hand and hopped over the distance, dragging her along.

Lucy bit back a snort at the mental imagery that conjured as they landed lightly on Gajeel's massive claw. With even Natsu terrified of Erza there was no way Sting could deny her, and she couldn't help imagining Erza's sword waving as she demanded the lift.

She shook her head a little and turned her attention to Levy and Happy, "Hey, you guys okay?"

"We're fine Lu." Levy assured her as she wrote out a quick ' **FIRE'** with her magic and pushed it towards Natsu, much to the dragon's delight.

"Aw thanks Levy!" He crowed as he greedily sucked the flames down, "You're the best!"

Lucy laughed at the look on his face, "I wish I could recharge my magic like that."

"No kidding!" Levy laughed, and peered at her friend seriously, "Are you sure you're alright? I heard you were taking on one of the Seven Kin."

Lucy nodded, "Don't worry about me!" She smiled, but it quickly fell off her face as Tartaros loomed up in front of them menacingly, "Honestly, I'm more worried about _that_ thing."

"Ain't gonna be an easy fight that's for sure." Gajeel rumbled in agreement as he was joined by Sting and Rogue, who were carrying most of their guild with them.

"It's like the Celestial War all over again." Natsu growled darkly, not happy with the prospect one bit.

Lucy frowned at that and curled her hand tightly in his, "No it's not." She told him firmly, "This time you have us fighting with you!"

She gestured to the rest of the nest and their guildmates, "We're not going to let history repeat itself Natsu! We're going to go up against these guys and we're going to win!"

She stepped forward a little, invading his space, "Your brother thinks he can take you from us! Well we're going to prove to him once and for all that you should _never_ mess with Fairy Tail!"

"If you two make out in my claws, I'm dropping you," Gajeel growled warningly, ignoring how Natsu dropped an elbow into his thumb in annoyance.

"Thanks Lucy," Natsu flashed her a bright smile. He looked through the slots of Gajeel's claws, squinting against the rush of wind as they soared closer to their target.

Until they landed on the floating cube, the dragon's losing their transformation to stand alongside their guild.

"You're right," Natsu grinned fiercely, fists curling tightly together, "It's about time we brought Tartaros down to its knees!"

He let out a vicious roar, one that was responded by the shouts of the guild members and the other dragons, roaring their answer back at him.

"Attack!" Gray shouted, a distance away from where Rogue had set him, Lyon, and surprisingly, Ultear down.

It seemed his fight had gone well with her.

And the guild began their assault, whipping into action as a frenzy of movement rose up from the walls of Tartaros to try and stop them.

"The Demon Gates!" Erza called out to her fellow members, "Those are our targets! Do not waste your time with the small fry! Our opponents are them!"

"We need to clear a path to get to Zeref! Only then will this battle be complete!" Jellal shouted on the heels of her cry, "Let's make this family reunion the last one between the Dragneels!"

There was a roar of acknowledgment as the small army surged forward with renewed energy and determination. They followed Erza's orders as they headed for the demon gates, only pausing if one of the lesser minions actually got in the way. But with the momentum and power being carried any resistance to their goal was quickly trampled.

Of course, the assembled demons merely waited on their approach with superior smirks. They were smug in the knowledge that despite their ability to beat Grimoire Heart these human insects couldn't possibly be a threat to them. They were created by Zeref to be superior in every way. The only one who could be real threat was End himself. And there was no way even he could defeat all of them at once.

Never had the demons been more wrong.

Fairy Tail, Lamia Scale, and Blue Pegasus crashed into them with the force of a tsunami, and in their arrogance they were scattered with the tide.

In moments fights had broken out all over the outside of the castle and the surface of Tartaros itself as humans and demons squared off against each other. The ones not actively engaged in a fight with Zeref's elite covered their comrade's backs by keeping anything that might interfere from doing that.

"Natsu!" Gray shouted over the din as he, Lyon, and Ultear squared off against Mard Geer, "We got this! Go punch your brother's face in! And do it right this time!"

Natsu looked at Lucy, his expression tight and she tightened her hand on his wrist, "You're coming with?"

"As if I'm going to let you fight your weird brain-napping brother again. In case you come down with a bad case of the crazies again, I wanna be there!" Lucy's determination leaked out in every word.

Natsu couldn't help but admire her, even though she still managed to call him crazy.

"Then lets go!" Natsu shouted as he charged off between the crowd of fighting bodies, Lucy on his heels.

There was a part of him that wanted to keep her safe and far away from the fight. But another part that knew, there was something about Lucy that Zeref feared. Something about her which could stop the assault of his darkness in his mind.

So many people believed he was the one who could defeat Zeref. End, the demon dragon, brought to life by his brother's hands and made into a weapon to destroy.

Perhaps he could do all the heavy lifting, but Natsu was not convinced that was the only factor at play. No.

If he had remained as he was, without ever meeting Lucy...

Sure, Zeref wouldn't be in the world.

But he would still be waiting. Patiently finding a way year after year to return home. Slowly growing crazy and damaging the world he occupied beyond recognition.

He had clearly created an impressive network for himself. Which meant he was dangerous. It would have only been a matter of time before he made it back to Fiore, with or without Lucy.

Lucy was a key player in all this. She had touched Natsu and healed him in ways no one had been able to before. Whatever she wielded, it was far more powerful than any kind of magic he knew.

Natsu had no more time to contemplate Lucy's magic as they made it to the top of the castle. He remembered, all too clearly, where the throne room was, and could see his brother sitting on the throne through the windows with that stupid look on his face that never failed to piss him off.

"Knock, knock!" He roared as he blasted his way inside and dropped down in front of his brother. He carefully set Lucy down once he'd landed, but kept his gaze locked firmly on Zeref. There was no telling what the bastard would try to do.

"Natsu." Zeref purred, "How very nice of you to decide to visit." He got up, "And you even brought Miss Heartfilia with you. How delightful! I was concerned I would have to find a way to collect her."

"What do you want with me now?" Lucy demanded, more than a little frightened of the idea, and shivered when Zeref turned a crazed look of hate in her direction.

"To break you." He spat, "You robbed me of my connection to my brother. My brother of his senses! I will make you watch as Natsu is brought to stand at my side again, and then we will break you together until you beg for death!"

Natsu snarled as he stepped in front of Lucy, fire and fury both radiating from him, _**"That is not gonna happen!"**_

He roared as he lunged for his brother only to be caught up short when Zeref calmly lifted his hand and hordes of lesser demons appeared, seemingly from thin air.

They were weak. He could tell that at a glance. But there were many of them, and he couldn't focus on both them _and_ Zeref.

"Go Natsu!" Lucy cried fiercely from behind him, prompting him to look over his shoulder at the vision of her holding up Wendy's key, "I'll deal with these guys! You go punch his face in!"

She slashed the key through the air, paying neither Dragneel any mind as she focused on the demons at hand, "I call upon thee in the world of the spirits! I beckon thee to my side at once! Pass through the gate!"

There was a bright flash of light and Natsu goggled a little at the horse dude that showed up with a salute.

"Howdy do my lady!" Sagittarius greeted, "I have kept up with the battle so far!" He flashed Zeref a steely look, "I will gladly aid you in destroying the Spirit Killer."

"Alright!" Lucy crowed triumphantly, and flared her magic once more, hoping this would work without a contract, "Then lend me your form and let's cover Natsu!"

The star dress formed, and Lucy had to admit she was kind of flying blind. She didn't know the extent of Sagittarius' abilities, but she had faith in her power to pick up on it.

She stood side by side with the archer, and together they unleashed a volley of arrows onto the crowd of demons, opening enough space for Natsu to blow through to Zeref.

"Thanks!" Natsu shouted out, fire slashing from his limbs as he crossed the distance to reach his opponent.

Something about what Sagittarius said struck Natsu, reminding him of the main factor in the Celestial War.

While it was true Zeref sought to open a gate to a new world to take Natsu. That was only achieved by wedging open the gates to the celestial realm. So many spirits had died as a result of forced exposure, trapping the spirits in a place their bodies could not sustain themselves. Star after star had flickered out.

Zeref was the enemy of so many. And he had done more injustice to the spirits than Natsu. Considering Natsu's personal history with his brother, that was saying something.

He had an idea.

But it was all up to Lucy whether or not it would work.

His eyes fastened onto his brother and he charged, flames licking at his heels in puffs. He launched himself at Zeref, forcing all of his strength through his fist as he slammed his knuckles into the black mage's jaw.

It was a blow that Zeref both was and wasn't expecting.

He'd expected his brother to try and punch him, but he'd been taken off guard by how fast Natsu had gotten, and how hard the impact was before he was sent flying.

He twisted around into a flip with practiced ease, but the sting still left him reeling with surprise. Natsu had never been able to land such a powerful blow before! Even during the Celestial War his little brother hadn't been this powerful. He'd frequently won his fights through pure luck.

This was the power of centuries of experience and practice backing Natsu.

It was impressive to say the least.

His eyes narrowed as he flung his hands forward to counterattack. Clearly he had to step up his game if he was going to put Natsu back in his place!

However, Natsu was not inclined to give him a chance for that.

He bounced through the air as he unleashed attack after rapid fire attack on Zeref. He knew better than to give his brother the chance to use any of his death magic, and fully intended to keep him so thoroughly on the defensive he never got the chance.

"Where's all this coming from?" Zeref taunted, slithering through the spikes and jets of flame conjured by Natsu. Both were fast, flashing back and forth between one end of the throne room to the other.

"Don't tell me you're angry Natsu?" Zeref's eyes flashed red, and he unleashed a black ball of magic which narrowly missed Natsu and scorched into the wall.

The stone decayed and crumbled, Zeref's magic eroding everything it touched.

Natsu didn't pay it any mind though, throwing his hand up in front of his mouth and breathing a roar of flame through his fist. A narrow jet of fire focused on Zeref, even as he moved to dodge.

"Damn straight I'm pissed!" Natsu shouted, a vein throbbing at his temple with every angry beat of his heart, "You want to hurt Lucy. All of this - out of _jealousy_!"

The thought of Zeref daring to put his hands on her. To break her so he could fuel whatever sick desires played out in his head.

"She has no role left to play in this story!" Zeref thundered back at Natsu, ignoring the smoking of his robes as Natsu fought back.

"You are my family, and I will not give you up to her!" Zeref shouted, red eyes furious with madness.

Natsu let out a roar of frustration. He didn't know how many times he had to scream his opinion of Zeref in his face before he understood.

Natsu loved Lucy. But more than that, he _liked_ her. She was his best friend. His confidant. Their relationship was one on equal footing, built on shared pain, trust, laughter, and healing.

Zeref couldn't scratch that. And Natsu wouldn't let that.

He had come too far with Lucy. Too far with Fairy Tail. He had friends, family, and the fiercest will to protect that with every dying breath in his lungs.

"Then try it!" Natsu howled, scales breaking out across his face and arms, decorating the back of his knuckles like encrusted rubies. He bared his fangs, fiery horns slashing up from his hair, "I won't let you hurt anyone else!"

"Fire Dragon Wing Attack!"

Zeref's eyes widened at the whips of pure flame lashed out at him. He remembered this attack. Igneel had used it more than once in their fight. He hadn't realized Natsu had perfected it.

He hastily moved to dodge out of the way as Natsu began falling back to the ground, but his moment of surprise cost him as he was caught by one of the flames and slammed into, and then through, the wall of his palace.

He groaned a little as he tried to shake off the pain of both the impact and Natsu's fire. He started to crawl out of the rubble he'd landed in, his temper rising as he did, only to find himself staring at a charging Natsu engulfed in flame.

"Fire Dragon Sword Horn!" The enraged dragon roared as he impacted his brother, and followed it with a flurry of strikes. Iron fists, flame elbows, dragon's claws... all were unleashed on Zeref without mercy.

However, despite Natsu's fury, Zeref was not out of the fight yet. He was long used to being able to focus his attention in multiple directions, and despite the pummeling Natsu was giving him he was easily able to section off a segment of his mind to think and gather his magic.

As Natsu slowed down, no doubt to see what kind of damage he'd done, Zeref smirked around his bloody mouth and pulled his hands together to launch a death orb at his brother from point blank range.

He was careful to modulate its strength enough that it wouldn't kill Natsu, which wouldn't do at all, but the impact still sent his brother flying and surely hurt very badly.

Natsu slammed into one of the walls, the impact causing it to crumble down around him. He snarled at the way the rocks were pinning his legs into the ground, "C'mon, stupid, shitty-"

Zeref stood up from the crater Natsu had pounded him into, his smile growing wider at each step he took towards his brother.

Temporarily trapped underneath the stone of Tartaros. What good fortune,

He stopped in front of Natsu, using that opportunity to blast him again while he was unable to move.

The dragon roared out, under his brother's volley, renewing his efforts to move. But for every strike, more of Natsu's strength was sapped away. Eroding under the exhaustion coming from Zeref's magic.

Zeref grew bolder, extending his hand out as he drew closer to Natsu still, "I will put you in the rejuvenation tank under Lamy's care. I'm certain she and Kyoka can work their magic to return you to our side."

"Demons aren't meant to love," Zeref crooned to Natsu, "Your fascination with the girl will fade, and you be glad for all the work I put into reuniting us."

He charged a fresh blast, lips curling into a benign smile, "Now sleep Natsu. When you wake up, all will be well."

Natsu snarled in low warning, but his body was too heavy to lift, much less dodge under a metric ton of rocks. His transformation felt out of reach, Zeref's magic working its way into his chest to smother his flames.

Natsu was so _tired_ thanks to the magic tearing through him. Death was the great sleep after all.

So he almost didn't notice when Zeref froze, and a shout of pain exploded from his brother's lungs.

Natsu had enough sense to look up and see Lucy standing a distance away, her bow in front of her and her arm lowering.

Wait. _Lucy?_

Alarm welled through Natsu, waking his senses up enough to realize she had come to his rescue. Again. She was trying to save him, having shot an arrow with deadly accuracy right into Zeref's wrist.

"Zeref, you're disgusting!" Lucy shouted at the black wizard, her voice loud and fierce, and shooting a fresh rush of warmth into Natsu's chest like one of her arrows.

"You've manipulated Natsu long enough, you don't love him. You just want him for the sake of having him!" Lucy carried on, drawing her bow back again.

"I won't let you hurt him any longer!"

Natsu felt his blood run cold at the way Zeref's eyes burned red with warning, the slow way his brother turned away from him, and how all of his dangerous attention fastened onto Lucy.

"Lucy! Run away! He's too strong!" Natsu shouted frantically at her, hands digging into the stone as he tried to claw his way to freedom, "I'll think of something!"

The blond shook her head and held her position firm, her eyes never leaving her target. Zeref approached like a storm, black magic licking off his body almost like one of Natsu's flames.

"Not on your life," Lucy declared, but Natsu could hear the faint tremble in her voice. She was afraid. And for good reason. His brother was dangerous.

"Enough of this," Zeref closed the space between himself and the woman in a second. The time it took for her to take a breath was shorter, and before she knew it, she was being thrown through the air, barely managing to hold onto her bow.

"I was going to make it long. To keep you alive long enough for you to realize my brother was no longer the one you loved," Zeref's expression darkened as Lucy struggled to get another shot off.

"But you're too crafty to keep alive," He snatched the bow from her hands and wrapped a cold hand around her throat, "And Natsu needs to be punished. So I think I'll change the order of my plan a bit."

His eyes turned towards the horrified Natsu, "I think I'll kill her right now."

Zeref's mad smile turned serene and his grip on Lucy tightened, "All it would take is a moment Natsu. One moment to snuff out your fighting spirit."

Natsu stared at the tableaux in horror, struggling to move, but unable to muster the strength to shift the rock off, and terrified that Lucy was about to die.

"Let her go Zeref!" He shouted, too exhausted even to roar, and felt ice clench his heart as Zeref's smile widened. His brother knew he had him right where he wanted him. At his complete mercy.

He struggled more, but without some fire or something he was helpless. And he knew giving in would only kill Lucy faster.

He had forgotten that the three of them were not the only ones there.

Zeref's back arched suddenly as he bellowed in pain once more, his grip on Lucy loosening enough she was able to tear away. Natsu gawked at the sight as Zeref stumbled, two very precisely placed arrows protruding from his back, and behind him...

Behind him stood a stony faced Sagittarius.

"I'm afraid I cannot allow you to harm my lady Spirit Killer." The spirit said firmly, a glint Natsu understood only too well in his eyes as he lined up another arrow, "Nor can I allow harm to come to her dragon."

The arrow sailed through the air, though Natsu was confused when it seemed to miss Zeref entirely, until it crashed into one of the large braziers that lit the place causing it to clatter into the wall.

The same wall that Natsu himself was pinned against.

The same one that also held more than one very flammable tapestry.

His eyes widened in shock as a few sparks that would've done him no good roared into an inferno that spread quickly into his range.

Fire! Sagittarius had figured out how to give him fire!

Natsu grinned fiercely as he opened his mouth and sucked the energy giving flames in greedily.

It wasn't the best tasting fire around, but Natsu didn't care. It warmed him up, refreshing his strength and chasing away the cold and exhaustion from Zeref's attacks.

In moments he was roaring in triumph as flames burst into being all over him and he was able to break free of his prison.

He leapt to his feet with another roar, scales quickly re-appearing as his magic surged through him and his transformation hovered just under the surface. Zeref seemed to move in slow motion, his body twisting towards Natsu as space disappeared between them.

 _ **"Fire Dragon King's Demolition Fist!"**_ He bellowed as he rammed his fist into his brother's stomach, sending him flying through the air, bouncing off and through several walls, to land in a deep crater in the middle of where the rest of the guilds had been fighting the Tartaros demons.

He unleashed his wings and scooped Lucy up, "Thanks Sagittarius." He growled, a smirk curling his lips as the spirit nodded before returning back to the celestial realm.

He flapped into the air and headed back to the ground. Even with all that he knew it wouldn't be enough to kill Zeref. It was not evident his brother's magic itself made him very difficult to kill by most standards, and reinforced the decision he'd been toying with at the start of the fight.

He landed by Zeref's twitching body, grateful he was out of it, and gently set Lucy back down. He paid no attention to the quiet, stunned, audience as he did. All his focus was on Lucy and what he was about to do.

He crammed his knee into Zeref's back, twisting his arms back in his hand and slamming his head into the ground to ensure his brother wouldn't rise up again.

"Lucy," He panted, looking up at the woman, "Can you still summon a spirit?"

The blond looked exhausted, and hesitated in consideration for a moment, but reached for one of her keys. After using two star dresses and her fight with Rusty Rose earlier, she didn't think she'd be able to hold another spirit in this realm for long, much less fight.

"I think so if it's quick." She stared at Natsu and held up her key ring, "Which one do you need? What're you planning?"

For a second Natsu didn't respond, but after a few seconds of struggling with himself his bruised face looked up at Lucy. A faint smile decorated his face.

"Leo," He answered.

Knowing Natsu's own complicated and interesting past with the celestial spirit, Lucy didn't comment on the choice. She took it for a good omen as she slashed the golden key, warm in her hand, through the air.

"He fought Capricorn earlier today, so I'm not sure if he'll be able to answer, and I can't keep him here for long, but here goes!" She pushed what little magic she had left into opening the portal, "Open! Gate of the lion! Leo!"

There was a weak shimmer of light through the air, and a bruised looking Leo appeared, his arm folded over his side, but his expression tired.

"You came," Natsu genuinely looked surprised. From what Lucy had described, he hadn't been certain Leo would be able to come, much less actually show up.

Humor twitched at the corners of Leo's eyes and Natsu felt something uncoil in his gut.

"I said I would," Leo answered.

"Now, what can I do for you? I can't stay here long," Leo flashed a worried look at Lucy. In truth, his own magic was largely contributing to him staying in one piece, and even that was quickly draining away.

Natsu understood the implications, and nodded down to his dazed brother, "I can't kill Zeref. It wouldn't be right. Even for everything he's done."

"The celestial spirits," Natsu's gaze lifted to Leo, "They deserve their justice too. A way for them to grieve for the lost spirits from the Celestial War, right?"

Leo frowned, exchanging a look with Lucy.

"I don't understand Natsu, what are you saying?" Leo asked.

Natsu's grip turned tight and he lifted Zeref's head, "He needs to be taken to the Celestial Spirit King and judged for his actions."

"Let him spend whatever time he needs in the celestial realm. It's the only place that will be powerful enough to contain him and see to his punishment," Natsu nodded, his decision firming.

The lion looked stunned. Natsu's grudge against Zeref ran deep. He had hurt Igneel, given him the injuries which ultimately cost him his life. For Natsu to freely give Zeref over to the spirits marked a great change.

He had come a long way.

Leo's eyes turned towards Lucy, the one who started all of this, and had brought them this new hope.

"I will do just that," Leo took a hold of Zeref's shoulders, Natsu allowing himself enough room to let go of him.

"Until we see one another again princess," Leo winked at Lucy, disappearing through the celestial gate with Zeref locked in his arms.

Lucy let go of the gate with a sigh of relief and felt her knees start to turn to rubber as her exhaustion slammed into her. However, despite that, she gave Natsu a wide smile full of love and pride as she dropped down next to him and leaned against him.

"I'm proud of you Natsu." She murmured, smiling as his arms curled around her and pulled her closer, and leaned over to drop a tired kiss on his lips, "I really am."

She leaned her head against his shoulder, "And it's finally over."

"Yeah. It is." Natsu purred warmly at her, his heart overflowing with emotion as the realization set in that it was over. Zeref was gone and would be dealt with by the spirits. Grimoire Heart and Tartaros wouldn't threaten them ever again.

He was... free.

Finally, for the first time in his life, he was truly free.

It was intoxicating.

He curled her into his arms as he stood back up and grinned broadly at her, "C'mon. Let's go celebrate!"

That triggered a roar of cheering and approval from everyone else, despite their various injuries, and Lucy giggled, "Yeah. That sounds good."

Contrary to her words however, Lucy dropped her head on Natsu's warm shoulder, the Fairy Tail mark gleaming a proud red against his skin. She saw only him and his lopsided, sunny smile, the promise of a protected future on the horizon.

It was strange how her story started with a pen and ink, bound together in the pages of a book.

Lucy always knew books opened roads to new adventures, but never had she dreamed she would be falling into one herself. She took hold of Natsu's hand, looking into his dark eyes, the green shimmering with happy confusion.

"What's the matter Luce?" Natsu asked, his smile reflecting her own.

It was interesting. But as she watched an old chapter on her life with Natsu close, opening up to a new one penned by a stranger stronger than fate, she couldn't help but wonder about the changes they had gone through together.

Natsu and she had both changed. Their lives paralleled far closer together than she would have ever thought.

They had both found a home in the dusty pages of the world's best Fairy Tail.

She just laughed and shook her head, drawing him in for another kiss.

"And they lived happily ever after."

 _ **FIN**_

* * *

 _ **Mslead:**_ Thank you to everyone who stuck with us to finish this WHOLE STORY OUT! IT'S DONE! THIS IS THE LAST CHAPTER OF PARALLELS! *waves goodbye to it* That's not to say this is the end of our collaboration team. No, we have several fics in the works! It's been a lot of fun to share this with you all, and we really hope to see everyone in future projects we make! That being said, we'll still have our Epilogue, and a oneshot to write for our 2000th reviewer!

 _ **Kytrin:**_ Wow, I don't normally do these for FF, but this is definitely a special occasion. As Mslead said this is our last chapter, not counting the epilogue, and it's been one heck of a ride! So many of you have told us just how much this story means to you, and I can honestly say it warms my heart to know that our work helps to bring a little extra light and happiness to your lives. It's my sincerest wish that you'll find just as much joy in our future endeavors, and give us as many incoherent screams of joy for those stories as this one. Take care you guys, and we'll see you for the Epilogue, the one-shot, and Mythos! :)


	61. Untitled

**_Epilogue_**

* * *

 ** _Untitled_**

 _"The rest is still unwritten."_

* * *

Lucy smiled as she stepped through the gate with practiced ease, her husband at her side, as the rest of their insane family tumbled through eagerly into her birth world.

She and Natsu hadn't brought anyone with them on their previous trips, enjoying their time here as a chance to get away from the insanity for a few days. However, this trip was special. She giggled as she watched them look around her living room in complete fascination and gently shut the gate behind them.

She'd gotten better at working with them over the last few years, and the results showed.

"Odds on the place being intact when we leave?" She murmured in amusement.

"Not any I'd bet on." Natsu snickered as he curled his arm around her waist and rubbed his hand over her rounded belly, "Don't care though. You got everything set up."

It had taken several months, and some very careful work, but Lucy's hoard was ready to be moved at last. He didn't mind. He had a large enough hoard to last them millennia. However, he respected her desire not to let anyone else get their hands on what was hers.

Though he was a little sad they were abandoning the lair they had here.

Still, he understood why they couldn't keep it forever. People would start asking questions eventually, and neither one of them had any desire to touch whatever was left of the network Zeref had built here.

"Lucy, how does this thing stay cold?" Gray called from where he'd wandered into the kitchen and was inspecting the refrigerator by opening and closing the doors on it.

"Electricity Gray." She replied absently, "And stop messing with the doors. The couple that bought this place is very nice, and I want to leave as much as possible in good condition for them."

There was a brief pause as Gray looked over to where Lucy was sitting down with a sigh of relief, her back to him, "How did you...?"

Lucy rolled her eyes and glanced over her shoulder at him, her hands absently rubbing against her very large and round belly, "The doors aren't exactly quiet you know." She drawled, "And you're forgetting who my _first_ visitor was."

Natsu cackled softly as he joined her and snuggled up to her side, happily rubbing his hand over her belly too.

It had been nearly nine months since it happened, but he could still hardly believe he was going to be a father. It still seemed like a strange miracle that should belong to someone else but somehow landed on him.

"Lucy," Jellal spoke up before an argument could break out, "Would it be possible to explore your world a little before we head back?"

"Yeah!" Levy spoke up eagerly, "I'd love to see that bookstore you keep talking about! Maybe we could find some things to help flesh out the next library."

"You mean there _ain't_ stuff you've put in that library yet?" Gajeel teased with a smirk, "You're slackin' shrimp."

Levy stuck her tongue out at Gajeel, "We're going to need more books for your reading-hungry children!"

Gajeel's lips just spread out into an even wider smirk, "They get that from their ma."

Lucy let out a quiet laugh, her arms looping around Natsu's pink head, where it was buried against her neck, "I think that's a great idea. And with our little one on the way, we're going to have to have plenty of books for him to read."

"Knowing our luck, the runts are going to go all dragon on us and try to hoard the books away," Gray called from the other side of the room, looking amused by the whole exchange - if a little disappointed his own wife couldn't come along. She was a water sprite, and being magical in nature - well they hadn't wanted to risk her turning into a puddle of water.

Natsu grunted, his thumb lightly tracing over Lucy's skin, a wide grin on his face, "If anything, ours will be a writer. With as much as Lucy's been doing lately, it wouldn't surprise me."

"Oh that's right!" Erza practically charged into the room, her red hair almost flyaway with her excitement, "We absolutely _must_ go to the bookstore. I require fifty copies of your novel Lucy!"

"What! Why? You all already know the story, don't you?" Lucy protested feebly. She was not at all opposed to them buying books, but having them read her writing was well... embarrassing.

"That's hardly the point Lucy." Erza replied sternly, "You've written the story out. There's bound to be things in it I never heard about." She nodded authoritatively, her eyes gleaming, "And our children will want to learn the story themselves!"

"Yes!" She exclaimed, "It's decided! We must go forth and procure Lucy's book for posterity!"

"But... I..." Lucy protested as Erza began efficiently herding everyone with them towards the door.

"I don't think you're gonna win this one Lucy." Gray commented in amusement, "Might as well give in."

Lucy sighed and nudged Natsu, "Come on then. Help me up. I'm not letting them go without both of us there."

Natsu wrinkled his nose briefly in distaste at the thought of going out into Lucy's smelly world, her house was much nicer, but gamely got up and helped her to her feet.

"Are you gonna be okay walking so much?" He asked in concern, aware of how easily her feet got swollen and hurt.

Lucy nodded, "I should be fine." She promised, "As long as we don't overdo it or anything the walk is short and the weather's nice this time of year."

Natsu nodded and handed her purse to her. He wasn't about to argue with her, vividly remembering the last time he had been foolish enough to try, but there was no way he was letting her out of arms' reach either.

He was worried, and understandably so about their hatchling. After all, they were both very magical beings, and Natsu was a hodge podge of all sorts of things. He was honestly impressed he had managed to get Lucy pregnant at _all_ being that his physiology was so vastly different from the average person.

That was bound to make their baby very special and very magical. So being in Lucy's magic-less home world made him nervous for both her and the child. So much so in fact, he had come over alone many times with Lucy opening gates for him just so he could get all of their stuff packed.

They were assured by all the healers they knew that Lucy's trip over would be safe for the baby, and Natsu was happy when he could still hear his child's heart beating strongly in his mother.

That didn't mean he was going to relax until they were back on their side of the gate.

So together they went to pick up several books at the Barnes & Noble. Even when it meant dodging the store's manager who Natsu and Gajeel avoided like the plague because of how much he _reeked_.

Natsu even managed to swipe a copy of one of Lucy's books himself. Because while he had already read her story in its rough drafts, he was a dragon, and he wanted a treasure from Lucy's world to keep.

He couldn't think of a better one.

-::-

Once they got back to the condo Lucy quickly sat down, gratefully ordered two dozen pizzas to tide everyone over after the insanity at the bookstore, and sighed as Natsu pulled her into his lap, glad to be off her feet, "I may need you to give me a massage when we get back."

"Sure thing." Natsu purred at her, leaning over to kiss her neck softly, pleased that the others were distracting themselves with their purchases so he could dote on her a little.

The bookstore had been… an interesting trip. To say the least.

Gajeel had trashed the place after the manager gave him a sneezing fit, so they'd gotten into trouble for that, and had to wait for the cops and statements and all that mess. Not to mention the paramedics when the bookshelves fell on the guy responsible for it in the first place.

At least the cops had decided Gajeel wasn't at fault and they could go pending further questioning.

Too bad they weren't going to get it.

After the pizzas had arrived and been devoured, Lucy got up, feeling much refreshed, and re-opened the gate at the prearranged time. The gate would only last for about half an hour or so as that was the maximum allowable time before it started to cause problems for the celestial realm. Thankfully, all the spirits had been prepared and moved out of the immediate area surrounding the gate so they would have all that time available.

It was amazing how accommodating they could be when one asked nicely.

"Alright people!" Natsu roared as he cracked his knuckles, "Let's go! This gate won't last long!"

What followed was a flurry of activity that Lucy didn't even try to follow as packages were passed through to those waiting on the other side, and in what seemed like a blink everything was through.

She smiled at Natsu in relief as he curled an arm around her waist and they stepped through back home.

The gate opened directly into their nest, finally having finished its construction. It had taken a very long time for it to be able to house them all comfortably, but the inside of the mountain had been hollowed out beautifully, with enough sky and natural light flooding through.

There was enough room for the dragons to transform if they wished and spread their wings. Natsu had dipped into his hoard finally enough to help move everyone in and remodel the place to their satisfaction.

The mountain became a community, almost like a small town of dragons lived within it, close enough to be involved with everyone's lives, but not enough to constantly find themselves in each other's business.

Yukino held the hands of two twins that looked just like their father and uncle, both donning snowy-white hair. After a year of moving into the nest, she and Sting finally had their wish of being able to start a family.

"Welcome back," she greeted them, "Did your trip go well?"

She released the hands of the two hatchlings, straining to get at Lucy and Natsu. They both laughed and latched onto one another's legs. Natsu reached out to steady his wife with one hand while he bent at the knees to sweep one of the twins under his arm.

"It was alright, ran into a few hiccups, Gajeel destroyed a store," Natsu tattled, balancing the hatchling on his hip and looping his arm around his small body.

Gajeel grunted sourly as he walked by with Levy.

"It was a bookstore," Levy whispered to Yukino, scandalized.

Lucy giggled as she ruffled her nephew's hair, feeling a strain she hadn't been aware she had fall off her shoulders entirely, "They'll be fine. We helped them clean up a little and gave them a really big sale."

"It wasn't my fault for once!" Natsu all but cackled, his arm hooking around the legs of the little one clinging to him. He instinctively twisted at the hips, carrying the squealing hatchling from side to side.

He lightly bumped heads with the snow haired boy and canted his head at him, "You guys play well with Erik and Kinana today? I hope you gave that scaly jerk a good workout."

"Natsu!" Yukino scolded lightly when her twins giggled. The one clinging to Lucy's side tugged on Natsu's pant leg.

"Uncle told us to tell you, 'pink isn't a manly color, you smell bad, and you're a little shit,'" The child parroted with an air of innocence that had all three adults gawking.

Yukino gathered her wits faster than most as Cobra's roaring laughter could be heard echoing further down the nest.

"Erik! You godda-" Yukino shrieked, only cut off mid sentence by Lucy's loud _'Yukino!'_

But the other celestial mage was already off, snapping a head back at Natsu, "Don't you dare use my children as a way of getting even with Erik!"

She was already turning a mountain of gold and out of sight, while Natsu giggled at Erik's soon-to-be demise.

Every dragon in the nest probably had heard that. Or at least knew Yukino was on a warpath now.

Lucy sighed and shook her head, "C'mon you three. Let's go raid the kitchens."

She badly wanted to sit down again, and the communal kitchens were the one place she could do so while keeping three dragons occupied. Of course, she hadn't really expected Natsu to notice while he was cackling over Cobra getting a beat down via celestial spirit.

However, no sooner had she mentioned it than he took one look at her and set down the twin he was holding to scoop her up instead.

"Natsu!" She squawked in surprise, but he just grinned.

"You kinda look tired." Was his only explanation before he turned his attention to the twins, "C'mon you two! Let's make Lucy a snack!"

"Yeah!" The twins crowed excitedly and in short order she was being carried off regardless of her protests that she could still _walk_ thank you very much.

"Natsu I _just_ ate." She huffed as they rounded the corner to the kitchens, "I'm not hungry yet."

In the distance a muffled explosion followed by a heavy thump and a yelp of pain could be heard. It seemed Yukino had found Cobra.

Natsu squinted as he saw a flare of bright, holy light illuminate a portion of the ceiling, and realized Sting had no doubt gone to investigate the source of his wife's screaming. Those two made a fearsome duo when it came to protecting their hatchlings from corruption.

His gaze softened at the sight of Lucy, her arms crossed over her chest as he carried her. A flicker of giddy warmth shot through him at the sight, knowing full well he and Lucy would make a team just as good in protecting their little one.

He helped to herd the twins into the right area and set them on a task of making something 'super greasy' for Lucy.

There were seating areas both large and small to accommodate dragons and their human sized companions, so Natsu knelt and deposited his tiring wife onto the lavish cushions.

Gajeel was milling around with a tall, blond headed dragon, his arms crossed as they spoke in low voices. When the blond glanced over at them, he offered a curt nod and diverted his attention again.

Lucy smiled a bit at the back of the blond's head. Laxus had been a complete surprise to her when she'd found out, which was approximately thirty seconds before she'd demanded he be called immediately and dragged Natsu over to the lacrima by the ear demanding he apologize immediately.

She had not been pleased to discover the master's grandson had been chased out of his territory when Natsu had decided he wanted it a century or so back.

Not surprisingly the call had gone about as well as could be expected, but once Laxus had worked out they really did mean it about him being allowed to return he'd slowly begun sniffing around the nest.

Gajeel was the main point of contact for that, and she was pleased things seemed to be going well even if Laxus was still a bit frosty towards Natsu, and by extension her. Not that she could really blame him.

She looked up as Levy and Kinana appeared in the doorway with a pair of children that were replicas of their parents, and couldn't help smiling.

The elder of the two, a boy that was pure Gajeel down to the studs and the scowl, broke away from Kinana to join the twins in their 'cooking' efforts while his little sister climbed down Levy to trot over to Lucy and climb up next to her.

"Your tummy's bigger." The little girl whispered in awe, and Lucy grinned as she laid a hand on her belly.

"Yeah. The little one's going to join us any day now." She grimaced a little as she felt what had to be a tiny heel jam into her, "Hopefully sooner rather than later. He's as much a kicker as his daddy."

"You mean as much a kicker as his mommy," Natsu gave her a pout, but made room for the little girl to cautiously nestle closer and lay her ear against Lucy's rounded stomach.

"Maybe," Lucy laughed, but let out a quiet groan and wince, at another particularly painful thump from her baby. The sound attracted not only Natsu's intense attention, but the other dragons as well.

Lucy almost sighed in tired amusement at the lingering looks, even from Laxus - who wasn't yet a full member of the nest. She lifted a hand to gently pat at Natsu's jaw, who was staring at her so hard she thought she might have smelt some smoke coming from the pillows around her.

The strength of a nest was apparently shown in its offspring. So all of the dragons had a very strong paternal instinct when it came to hatchlings of any nature. While it was strong in both females and males, it seemed to assert itself more dominantly in the men. It was something which explained a lot about Natsu, and the careful way he always treated children, even while at his worst years ago.

Regardless, that meant whenever Lucy made a noise of pain or discomfort, she found herself the focus of their concerned glances.

Either that, or they were just _really_ worried about a pregnant lady in a cave.

Which was a possibility. Even if it was a really nice cave.

"I'm fine Natsu, you're going to go cross eyed if you look at me that hard. I'm not due for at least another week, and we've been through this with Yukino," Lucy grinned.

"I know," Natsu grumbled at his wife, relaxing and slipping back into his cushions to wrap his arms grumpily around himself. He was keeping an eye on the children and their peanut butter to marshmallow-pickle ratio they were piling onto a loaf of bread.

He had an iron stomach, but he wasn't sure even he could eat that.

It made Natsu wonder how Lucy could.

"And don't forget we did it with Levy, twice-"

"I know," Natsu mumbled

"And Kinana," Lucy smirked.

"I _know_!" He growled back at her, squinting his eyes at her in irritation. "Rub it in why don't ya?"

"I will," She laughed, her smugness practically etched on her face.

She stretched a little, suddenly feeling the strain of opening two gates start to catch up to her, "Sorry guys, but I think I want to go lie down for a while."

She nudged the little hatchling still holding onto her, "Sorry sweetie. We'll snuggle more later. I promise."

She got a pout for her efforts, but a nod as she trotted back to her mother, and she blessed dragon instincts. The little ones were very delicate with her now, and didn't argue when she said she needed to eat or rest.

She smiled at Natsu, "You want to join me?"

Natsu grinned back at her and nodded, his irritation immediately forgotten with the prospect of snuggling up to his wife and doting on her while she ate her gross sandwich.

The look on his face had Levy and Kinana giggling in understanding, "Don't worry Lu." Levy smiled, "We'll make sure you don't hear a peep."

"Thanks guys." Lucy breathed with a smile. Unlike a full dragon's nest they didn't specifically have one queen, but since she was regarded as the one who'd made the nest possible the other three women tended to defer to her, and lately had been going out of their way to give her a break.

A fact she was really grateful for since it seemed demon dragon babies were very demanding.

She watched as Natsu packed up her sandwich and then reached out to help her up.

"Ugh, I feel like I swallowed a planet or something." She complained as she heaved herself to her feet, "I don't even remember what my feet look like."

"Hatchlin's probably a drake." Gajeel smirked, "Metallicana said they tend to be big when they're born." He flashed Natsu a toothy grin, "Except when they're like the runt here."

"You wanna say that to my face metalhead?!" Natsu snarled, a little lick of flame puffing out of his mouth.

"Heh, I just did stupid."

"Natsu!" Lucy exclaimed, hoping to divert the impending wrestling match, "Fight later. Bedroom now."

"You sure she's not the official queen?" Laxus muttered to Gajeel in slight awe. No matter how many times he saw it he always had to keep his jaw from dropping at the seemingly effortless way Lucy dealt with End.

Gajeel opened his mouth to reply when there was a sudden cry of surprise from Lucy. All attention was drawn instantly to where she was bent over, clutching her stomach, while liquid spilled between her legs.

"Oh hell." Lucy whimpered, her voice strained, "My water just broke."

Natsu stared, as did everyone in the room. No one immediately knowing what to do or say at the rather sudden turn the day had taken.

"Did Lucy have an accident?" Levy's little girl asked finally, voicing the question that was on all of the children's minds.

The question, innocently said, seemed to have knocked the sense into everyone. Natsu sprang forward in a bit of a panic, scooping Lucy up before running in a wild, uncomprehending circle. When he seemed to realize he was going exactly nowhere, his heels grinding into the earth as he forced himself to a halt.

Lucy gave a wince as one of her first contractions hit, her arms tightening around him, even as the others all but fled to find Wendy and Fairy Tail's crabby healer.

Taking a deeper breath, the reality of what was happening between them sprang to the forefront and Natsu flashed her a shaky smile.

"You ready to be parents Luce?" Natsu asked, her hand making its way into his.

She smiled back at him, and his heart swelled at the brave look on her face and the fierce set to her lips.

"To our next great adventure."

* * *

 _ **And there we have it! Thanks to everyone who stuck by with us! Hopefully we will see you all in Mythos!**_

 _ **Stay tuned for the oneshot set in the Parallels Universe!**_

 _ **(Also, if you all haven't seen, Snogfairy, Toxineena, and Mslead have a new story up on their collab account (eviltrinity) called 'Into the Ring' - check it out if you want to, it updates weekly!)** _


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